Countdown Once Again
by Lang Krista
Summary: Feeling melancholy, Ran decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain some heart-stopping revelations… and insight into Shinichi's mind. Takes place after 5th movie, Countdown to Heaven. Follows anime.
1. Prologue

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain a heart-stopping revelation… Takes place after 5th movie.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Author's note : This is an old crappy story of mine that I posted just for kicks. Also to see what kind of response this level of writing would have. I have a few other chapters of it not yet reviewed. I might continue this story after reviewing.

**_Blabla_**: diary writing

_Blabla_ : flashback or thoughts

**Prologue**

_**Conan-kun is a very special child. In fact, he's almost… strange.**_

Mouri Ran nibbled on the end of her pen, frowning down at her diary.

She had just spent the whole week relaxing at home to recover from the events of a few days ago. To begin with, the Nishitamashi Councilman, Oki Iwamatsu, whom they had met at the Twin Towers, had been murdered in a hotel room of one of those very buildings.

Then, the game programmer, Hara, had been killed in his own home.

And _then,_ at the Twin Tower opening party, the buildings' and Tokiwa corporation owner and old friend of her father's, Tokiwa Mio, had been hung above stage, in front of her art instructor's latest painting. The curtains had been pulled back to the horrifying scene. The worst part was that the artist, Master Kisaragi Hosui, was Mio-san's killer.

_**I've often thought so. I mean, he appeared out of nowhere one day. **_

_**His parents, who are away in America, seem to neglect him completely. We get a check every month to cover his living expenses. Sometimes, if he's lucky, he'll get a phone call. But that's it. No visits, letters or whatever. I feel really sorry for him, but the weird thing is, he doesn't seem to miss his parents at all. That makes me wonder if it's always been like this for him.**_

Explosions. She _hated_ explosions. They happened suddenly and made a whole lot of noise and usually heralded mortal danger. And she also hated the dark, for criminals favored it. Yesterday's explosions had made the lights go out. A very bad combination in her book.

_**And then there's the way he acts. I've grown more or less used to his quirks, but when I stop to think about it, there's just no way a normal child would behave the way he does, especially in a crisis. **_

**_When something bad happens, you expect a kid to scream and cry and cling to whoever's closest for reassurance and comfort. What you _don't _expect is for them to keep their cool and think about the best course of action. _**

**_I've stopped counting the number of dead bodies we've seen, but I remember that the very first one was in Okino Yoko-san's hotel room. I can't imagine that Conan-kun had been at a crime scene before coming to live with us, and yet, of the two of us, _he_ was the one to keep his head and _I _was the one who freaked out and screamed._**

By some miracle, the VIP elevator had still been working, and the police had used it to get the women and children out.

Well… most of them, anyway.

Sonoko, Conan and herself had taken the third lift down with the last of the women. Just past the 45th floor, the elevator had, for some reason, stopped. They had been forced to escape via the trap door on the ceiling and from there get back inside the building.

Conan had been the first to think of it.

"_Ran-neechan! Lift me up!"_

_A second was all it took for Ran to understand. She hauled the boy up on her shoulder and from there, gave him a boost. With surprising agility, Conan-kun had flipped himself over using the bar on the ceiling, and kicked out the trap door. In the next moment he standing out of sight on top of the elevator._

_Ran was next to emerge. Looking up, she spotted him already trying to pry the doors to the 45th floor open._

At that time, though, she hadn't known it was the 45th floor. Conan had been the one to tell the rest of them. Then, after one woman spotted smoke filtering in the corridor, he had been the one to urge them to run to the Sky Bridge.

_**He doesn't fidget. He doesn't yell (except when it's unavoidable), doesn't even talk loudly, doesn't pester anyone for attention when he's bored. He almost never complains. He has a knack for getting into trouble, like that time he and his friends were supposed to chaperone a younger boy called Toshiro-kun on the First Errand event, and somehow they all ended up trapped with a cadaver in the basement of a building that was being demolished.**_

_**Luckily they escaped through the sewers, but I shudder to think about how the whole thing could have ended.**_

They had been hurrying across the Sky Bridge when the one above it had come crashing down. Conan, being last, and she, being right in front of him, had been trapped in the A tower.

Shaken and slightly disoriented, she'd pushed herself up on her knees.

Even now, she couldn't believe what she had said at that moment.

"_What now, Conan-kun?"_

Instead of the child relying on the near-adult, it had been the other way around. And yet, at that time, it had seemed perfectly normal, like instinct, to turn to her charge for advice.

_**He's related to both Agasa-hakase and Shinichi. Now THAT is WEIRD. That means hakase is related to Shinichi, if only vaguely.**_

Unfortunately, all that Conan had to say was that they were in a very bad situation.

"_All the escape routes are blocked. The fire is immersing the fire doors."_

Indeed, even as she stared, smoke billowed into the corridor from both ends.

"_No way…"_

Stricken with fear, all she could do was stand there, until her protégé had started coughing. His lungs being smaller than hers, he was more vulnerable to the smoke. His distress had awakened her will to survive, as well as the instinct to protect her young companion.

_**He often wears a suit. He seems pretty comfortable in it, whereas no other kid his age would voluntarily wear something as constricting as that on ordinary days.**_

_**He never takes off his glasses. He even wears them to bed, and in the bath. He says his eyesight is really bad, but he's only seven! How bad could it be? Then again, it could be a disease of some sort… If it is, he's never mentioned it.**_

He hadn't protested as she picked him up and wound the fire hose securely around them both. His grip on her shoulders had been steady and firm, getting only a little tighter when he twisted around in her hold and stared down at the vast distance between their current position and the ground.

_**He's just… different. Just as unique as Shinichi is. **_

_**Everybody feels it. Even dad. Or else why would he let him come along on almost all his cases? Why would Megure-keibu and the other officers answer his questions so patiently and take him so seriously whenever he makes a comment? Why would they let him stay at crime scenes, when they would try to keep any other kid away from such gruesome sights?**_

And then, instead of seeking to hide from that sight and clinging to her like any normal child would have done, he had fixed his wide blue eyes upon her face and asked her…

"_Ran-neechan, are you scared?"_

…as if trying to see how he could comfort her. She had explained to him that even if she was scared, she had to survive, because Shinichi had told her to wait for him. Beyond that, words had failed her, but that hadn't been a problem.

"_It's going to be alright, Ran-neechan."_

_The smile on his face was beautifully warm. So much like Shinichi's. She couldn't help but return it._

_As the fire raged on behind them, she jumped over the edge._

The following events were a blur. Somehow she had smashed in a window and gotten them both to safety. Over the loud beating of her heart, she had heard herself inquiring after Conan's wellbeing. And his response had been…

"_That was amazing, Ran-neechan."_

_It was as if he had never doubted that she could save them from a horrifying death._

Ran's pen stopped its quick motions. She gazed down at the page on which she had written without seeing the words.

They had made it out of the building, using the stairs, and from there, she had become a spectator.

She had watched as Conan's yellow and blue skateboard fell from the sky and shattered on impact with the ground, only then realizing that he had gone back to help his friends, still trapped in the A tower, at the entrance to the second Sky Bridge, on the 60th floor.

She had listened numbly as officer Shiratori announced that the boy had just flown across the distance separating the two towers.

She had looked on helplessly as the roof the A tower burst into fire and the rescue helicopter was forced to retreat. The water from the hoses that some firefighters had brought could not reach the flames across such a distance, and all she could do was bite her lip and hope the inferno died out quickly.

Then had come the heart-stopping call from Conan, stating that the party room in which the children were forced to wait was full of bombs. Right after that, with no explanation, the boy had requested that they open the roof of the pool on top of the B tower.

Wanting to know if she could be of help, Ran had seized Inspector Megure's cellphone and demanded to know what the children were up to.

Conan had not answered her. Instead, his response had been most cryptic.

"_Ran-neechan, I'm returning to you now."_

_The line went dead._

Then all they could do was wait, and wait they did, until, with a tremendous crash, the bombs went off, blowing out the glass windows of the party room.

She remembered thinking wildly that it was all over, that she would never get to see Conan—_Shinichi_—again, that the children could not possibly have survived, that the boy that she loved as a younger brother had lied to her—and then, miraculously, a car, a bright red car had come flying out of the smoke, hurtling towards them.

It was the convertible that her father had won in that 30-second contest earlier.

Everything happened in a flash—she had glimpsed the kids aboard the vehicle, Ai hanging from the side, and Conan standing on the dashboard, seen something blast ahead of them with incredible speed, and then the car was in the pool and the spectators were rushing inside.

She still couldn't believe that they had all survived—without even a scratch at that. Not to mention they had rescued Master Kisaragi.

There were a lot of things she still couldn't believe about that day.

And it was only afterwards, when she was safely tucked under her covers, blissfully taking in the scents and sight of her room, at _home_, that she wondered…

Whose idea was it to use the car as a means of transport? Whose idea was it to use the explosion as a means of propulsion? Who was it that had driven the car?

…Who was it that had gone back to make sure the kids were okay in the first place?

And she knew, somehow, that the answer to all of those questions was _Conan. _

She also knew that if the situation had been a little different, she would have answered _Shinichi._

Shinichi…

Suddenly Mouri Ran was depressed more than confused. Her best friend's—and secret love interest's—absence weighed heavily on her, even though she had received a phone call from him as soon as she had gotten home.

He hadn't had a clue what she had just been through, cheerfully greeting her by saying, "Oi, Ran! Are classes that grueling that a whole weekend isn't enough to recover from them?"

She had explained to him, of course, and he had been appropriately concerned. And she had to admit she had felt a lot better after talking to him.

But she _missed _him.

She missed him _so much_ that it was almost physically painful.

She sat up abruptly. She needed to see him, but she couldn't. So she would go to the one place that reminded her most of him.

His house.

His house, where they had met, played together, laughed together, had had adventures in. Yes, she would go there.


	2. Chapter 1

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain a heart-stopping revelation… Takes place after 5th movie, hypothesizing that Gin decided to investigate the survivors of the explosion from the bombs. Events then precipitate and story diverges from canon.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Author's note : This is an old crappy story of mine that I posted just for kicks. Also to see what kind of response this level of writing would have. I have a few other chapters of it not yet reviewed. I might continue this story after reviewing.

I do very much appreciate constructive reviewing. If something bothers you about the story, the grammar, the layout of the text, etc. I want to know about it. That does not give you leave to flame. Insults, negative comments with no explanations and the like will also be thoroughly ignored.

Short positive reviews will not improve my writing but will boost my ego, which is also nice. They are quite welcome.

_**Blabla**_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

**Chapter 1**

Every time she used it, she couldn't help but gaze at it fondly. She felt so privileged to have been entrusted with the spare key to the Kudo house.

She fitted it into the keyhole and unlocked the door.

Though the building was dark (it was evening, after all), it did not seem threatening to her. Instead, she felt reassured, surrounded by a familiar setting, familiar scents—almost as familiar to her as her father's detective agency.

She stepped inside, gently closing the door behind her, and flicked on the hall's light. Instantly, the house seemed more welcoming. She gratefully took off her shoes and wandered further in.

Taking her time, she made her way to the wooden stairs, slowly climbing them and ending up in front of what she knew was…

_Shinichi's room._

She stared.

The bed was made, but there were creases in the covers that hadn't been there before.

The furniture was still gathering dust, but the layer of gray had been disturbed in a few places.

There was a wad of paper in the wastebasket that hadn't been there before.

All this she knew for having come over several times after Shinichi's disappearance, spending long moments seated on the desk chair, memorizing the room's every corner. And because of this, it had come to her attention: someone, other than her, had been here… and recently at that.

Logical thought failed her ; she shot out of the room, calling wildly, "Shinichi, Shinichi?", running through the house and opening each door, searching every possible hiding place.

Finally she came to a corridor that she had not seen before. She had explored most of the building with Shinichi in her younger years, but she had never dared set foot on the worn stairs that led up to this part of it: it was constantly dark and bare of any decorations, unlike the rest of the house.

In her wild dash, her old fears had been forgotten and before she knew it, not only had she taken the stairs, she had run all the way to the end of the corridor and now stood facing… a wall.

There was nothing there. Feeling vaguely disappointed and embarrassed, Ran took a moment to calm down.

'Mouri Ran, you should be ashamed of yourself. The house was totally dark when you came here, if he wasn't sleeping in his room or on the library couch then of course he wouldn't be anywhere else!'

She put her back to the wall and slid down into a reclining position. It was most unfeminine, but at that moment, she could not have cared less. Shinichi had been here, and had not bothered to tell her, to see her. All she had gotten was a phone call.

Her gaze focused on the ceiling as she heaved a sigh. There was something hanging there. It took her a moment to process was she was seeing. A long piece of dark, sturdy string with a loop at the end...

Ran stood up slowly, her heart beating harshly against her ribs. The cord wasn't hanging from the ceiling, it was hanging from a trap door. A trap door that gave access to…?

She bit her lip. She was probably not supposed to be there, since the Kudo family had never told her about their having an attic. It would be awfully rude to just go up without permission.

An irrational thought flashed through her mind. 'What if Shinichi comes back and catches me up here?' Half a moment later, she slapped her forehead. 'Why in the world would he show up _now_ of all times? Use your brain, girl.'

She reached for the cord, a feeling of rebellion blooming within her. 'Besides, if he tries to yell at me for intruding, I'll just have to remind him of three things : I can't _intrude_ if he's never _there_, _he's_ the one who gave me the spare key, and _I'm _the karateka here.'

The attic stairs touched the floor. Resolutely, she trekked upwards. A world of dust greeted her.

She sneezed. Repeatedly. 'That was most… ungraceful.'

Blinking tears out of her eyes, she crouched on the next-to-last step, her head poking out of the attic's floor. Seeing nothing menacing, she made it the rest of the way up.

She looked around. There was a string hanging from a bare light bulb nearby; she pulled it, and light flooded the room.

'Well, there certainly isn't much here. Nothing but furniture.'

Indeed, the only things there were several massive, metal filing cabinets (seven of them!), an old rocking chair, an equally old desk and matching chair, two rolled-up carpets, and a pyramid of cardboard boxes in one corner.

She pulled the string again and was about to come back down, feeling both relieved and disappointed not to have found anything incriminating, when she spotted something that made her halt her progress.

There were scuff-marks in the dust.

Ran bent down to examine them more closely; they were evenly-spaced, and she didn't need to be a mystery-maniac to realize that they were, in fact, _footprints._

'Ah-ha. So Shinichi likes to come here, does he?' A cursory glance around the room told her she hadn't missed anything else. 'Probably for the filing cabinets, then.'

She turned on the light again. The attic was spacious; she was able to stand to her full height and not worry about hitting her head on the ceiling.

Ran made her way to the cabinets. They were separated into two sets : a beige-and-brown one, and a dark-green one.

The first set had seen much use; it seemed older, bearing traces of rust and small dents, and the footprints did not go near them.

The dark-green set was obviously newer. The metal handles were shiny, the paint unmarred, and the locks…

The locks.

'Great. Now I'm going to have to snoop around for a key.'

In fact, she did not have to "snoop around" much—said key was in plain sight on the wooden desk.

She raised an eyebrow. It wasn't like Shinichi to be so careless. Maybe the contents of the metal giants weren't that important after all. But then why have locks on the cabinets at all?

She went to pick up the tiny thing. A gasp escaped her lips—the key was not sitting on the surface of the desk as she had though. Instead, it had been placed on top of a white envelope… with her name on it.

In Shinichi's handwriting.

She snatched it up in shaking hands. There was barely any dust on it, confirming her suspicions that Shinichi had been there not long before.

She turned it over. Nothing else was written on it. Just _Ran_.

She fumbled with it, ripping it open. Then she swallowed hard and wiggled her fingers inside. Her fingers encountered something cold. Startled, she pulled it out.

It was a necklace. Or, more precisely, a locket, in the shape of a miniature, metal book on which were carved intricate designs as well as the English words "Our Story" in fancy lettering. It shone brightly even in the dim light.

'Must be sterling silver. But why…'

Ran fiddled with the tiny latch on the side of the locket until it popped open, revealing… her own face. She was smiling warmly, in the picture, at something right in front of her.

Ran tilted the "book" slightly and gasped softly. From the left side of the locket, _Shinichi's_ grinning face stared up at her.

Overwhelmed, she put the locket down and reached back into the envelope. She pulled out two more things; one was a small picture, the other was a folded piece of paper. She opened it.

_**Dearest Ran,**_

A blush came to her cheeks.

_**I will start this letter by saying I'm sorry, and I will end it by saying I'm sorry. Sorry for all the lies I've been forced to tell you, sorry for making you cry and worry so much, sorry for putting you in so much danger all the time, and sorry for making you wait for so long.**_

The blush drained from her face, along with any other color. Dread settled in her stomach. Suddenly, she did not want to read the rest of the letter—yet she forced herself to.

_**Sorry for scaring you by writing that. Okay, I think that's all.**_

Her lips twitched.

_**I'll start by telling you about the locket. **_

_**I just happened to walk by a jewelry store the other day and saw it on display. Yup, it's as boring as that. I thought it was, well, pretty, and I thought you would like it for your birthday, so I bought it. **_

She frowned the slightest bit at that. Her birthday was more than two months away.

_**Now, I know it won't be your birthday for a while yet, but you know how I like to jump on opportunities. And the reason I'm giving it to you now, well…**_

_**I just know I'm going to scare you again. I'm sorry, Ran. Yes, again.**_

_**I was afraid that if I didn't arrange this now, you would never get it.**_

Her blood froze in her veins. Dizziness assaulted her, and she tried to remember to breathe.

Ran lowered the paper momentarily. It couldn't possibly be as bad as it sounded, right? She took a few deep, deliberate breaths despite the dust in the air. In any case, she wouldn't be of any use if she worked herself up and fainted or something.

_**The worst part is, I wish I could tell you that I'm being a drama queen and not to worry, but I can't. I've lied to you too many times already. I'm not about to do so in what may be my last words to you. The truth is, I am probably headed straight into danger at this very moment, and I'm not sure I'll come out of this alive.**_

_**If I don't, it will be up to you to stop them. I wish I could spare you the fear and danger and the heavy burden of this secret, but I can't. Hundreds of people have died by their hands, and hundreds more have had their lives ruined because of them.**_

_**The ones I am speaking of are the men in black, members of the Black Organization.**_

The name had a sinister ring to it. Ran clutched the paper tighter to still her trembling fingers, willing this to be a horrible joke.

_**All the information I've been able to dig up about them is in the first drawer of the first green cabinet.**_

_**Now don't misunderstand me. I don't want you to start chasing them yourself and charge headlong into danger.**_

_**If I don't call you within the week, that means before Saturday the ninth, I want you to bring Megure-keibu and your dad up here in the attic under the pretense of… I don't know, discussing one of my old man's files that you found in the beige cabinets, and give them the documents. They'll know what to do with them.**_

_**Most importantly, they are two of the few people I know I can trust (though I hate to admit it in your dad's case).**_

_**The police doesn't know much about the Black Organization. Those that do either conveniently disappear, are silenced, or, as is most often the case, are part of it themselves, willingly or not. **_

_**Also, please don't try coming after me before the one week delay ; you could accidentally interfere with some delicate planning on this side and the situation might become even worse.**_

She let out a pained sound. This was sounding worse and worse. What had Shinichi gotten himself into? Did _anyone_ know what he was involved in? Did his parents know anything? Or was Shinichi recklessly acting alone against these dangerous criminals?

_**The rest of the files in the green cabinets are for you, Ran. **_

_**You know my disappearance wasn't normal. You want to believe it was, and I told you-repeatedly- that there was nothing going on but the usual. But you know it wasn't. **_

_**A few days after that fateful evening in Tropical Land, I realized that I had to do something to alleviate the guilt of constantly lying to you. It kept piling up, and every time I saw your face I could feel it twisting in my gut. Eventually I would have snapped, and possibly done something reckless. **_

_**I had to find a way to let it out. No matter how slight the relief, it would be welcome.**_

_**So the lies kept pouring from my mouth, and the truth I put on paper. It's all in there, Ran. In those cabinets. It's meant for your eyes only. After the one week is up, you have to move them as soon as possible, somewhere safe. Maybe you can ask Sonoko to put them into storage in one of her villas, preferably one that her family uses often, with high security.**_

_**There's so much to tell, and so little time… Gods, I'm being sickeningly poetic without even intending to. I hate that.**_

Ran tried to smile. She failed.

_**There's something I have to tell you. If I die, you won't ever see Conan again, either.**_

She stopped breathing, mouthing "_What?"_

_**I can't imagine how much this is going to hurt you. I know you've come to care a lot for him.**_

_**You care a lot about everyone. I have a friend that had never known the kindness of a stranger before. She met you, and you touched her deeply; you changed her.**_

_**That friend will be with me till the end, and so might not make it either, which is why I have to make yet another painful revelation: Haibara Ai might also disappear.**_

_**No, I'm not putting any innocent children in danger, I swear. That's something I would never do. Conan and Ai… are **__**not**__**children. Again, explanations are in the files.**_

_**There are six letters in the top drawer of this desk, from Conan and Ai, addressed to the kids: Mitsuhiko, Genta, and Ayumi. There wasn't time to write to anyone else. Please give them the letters after the one week delay.**_

_**I've run out of time, Ran. I'll have to leave it at that, and hope we'll see each other again for the rest.**_

_**One last secret before I go: I love you, Ran.**_

A little cry escaped her lips; her eyes welled up with tears. Her hands shook so much she had trouble seeing the words. Her breathing was fast and shallow. She shook her head, once, twice, eyes wandering off the page as her thoughts whirled, before forcing herself to continue reading.

_**I tried to tell you on that date at Tokyo Tower. And don't start regretting anything: at the risk of sounding arrogant, I know that you love me too. Because you told Conan, and so told me.**_

_**There are so many things I wish for, Ran. Most of all I wish you could have kept living happily without me, and never have to worry about the Black Organization and all. I'm sorry for that, Ran.**_

_**I'm sorry for everything.**_

_**-Kudo Shinichi**_

_**P.S.: It may be selfish of me to ask you this, but… please don't forget me.**_

A wail of sorrow echoed through the empty mansion.


	3. Tropical Land Roller Coaster Murder Case

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain a heart-stopping revelation… Takes place after 5th movie, hypothesizing that Gin decided to investigate the survivors of the explosion from the bombs. Events then precipitate and story diverges from canon.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Author's note : This is an old crappy story of mine that I posted just for kicks. Also to see what kind of response this level of writing would have. I have a few other chapters of it not yet reviewed. I might continue this story after reviewing.

_**Blabla**_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

**Chapter 2**

Ran did not know how long she had spent on her knees in the attic, sobbing uncontrollably and clutching the letter to her chest. Only the thought of Shinichi being in mortal danger pulled her out of her daze.

'The sooner I read those files, the sooner I'll understand what's going on, and the sooner I'll be able to help him. After all, those files are all I've got to go on… That… idiot… deduction-maniac!'

Straightening painfully, she glanced at the cabinets, hesitating.

'I can't take them home with me. There's always the chance of Otou-san poking his nose where it shouldn't be in a drunken moment…'

Making a quick decision, she scooped up envelope, necklace and picture before opening the desk drawer. As promised, three more envelopes were waiting within, each labeled with a different name. She took them as well.

If the situation was as serious as Shinichi seemed to imply, then the slightest bit of information about the Black Organization should not be left lying around. Living around so many detectives had taught her that.

Wiping her face with the back of one hand, she took a deep breath and decided to head home.

"Tadaima!" she said as she opened the door of the agency.

"Oi, Ran! Where've you been? 'm starving!" Mouri Kogoro yelled from his desk.

Beer cans littered the surface of it, the ashtray was overflowing, and the TV was blasting Okino Yoko music.

'Starving and drunk,' thought the girl, sniffing in disdain.

"I told you earlier, supper's in the fridge, all you have to do is put it in the microwave! Anyway, Otou-san, for the next few days I'll be sleeping over at Sonoko's, we've got a school project that needs to be handed in Monday. If you need something, call me on my cellphone."

'The cellphone that Shinichi gave me,' she couldn't help but think.

Not waiting for a response, she climbed up to the house part of the building. Reaching her room, she got down to business.

She grabbed a duffel bag and threw it on her bed. Moving quickly, she started packing.

'Pajamas, underwear, change of clothes, hairbrush, karate gear…'

Picking up the now-bulging bag, she made her way to the bathroom where she collected her toothbrush, a tube of toothpaste, soap, a washcloth, and a bottle of shampoo.

Closing the duffel bag with difficulty, she hauled it over her shoulder.

'Good thing Otou-san is so famous,' she mused. 'The school is used to my absences and won't call home. I'll have to make up a story for Sonoko, though. Wish I didn't have to, but this is much too dangerous for her to…'

With a start, she realized that she was doing the exact same thing that Shinichi said he had done. Lying, to hide and protect. And it felt horrible, a weight on her shoulders that she longed to shed.

'And it's not even been a day. Oh, Shinichi…'

She shook her head. She was _not_ helping him by standing dumbstruck in the bathroom doorway like an idiot.

Locking up the house, she stopped briefly to tell her father she was leaving and not to spend all night in the agency part of the house.

"Remember to lock up and close the windows!"

"Hai, hai!" he grumbled.

"Ittekimasu!"

With that, she took off at a jog, knowing a few minutes wouldn't make much difference but unable to force herself to slow down.

She couldn't understand it. The big mansion, which had been a great comfort to her earlier, was now making her uncomfortable.

Her father, having never had more than a modest salary, could only afford a small apartment for the both of them, as well as the agency. She wasn't used to living in such a large house.

It had been late when she had gotten here, so she had opted to make herself at home in one of the guest rooms. The bed was comfortable, the sheets were soft, the pillow was cushy, and all three smelled good.

Yet she could not fall asleep. She was only too aware that her breathing was the only sound in the entire mansion, that all of those rooms and halls were completely void of human life, save for this one.

She tossed and turned for a good twenty minutes before sitting up with a defeated sigh. Perhaps she needed to tire herself out a little more before trying again. And she knew just the thing to do.

Wrapping herself in a robe and putting on her slippers, Ran headed up to the attic. Once there, she turned on the light and shielded her eyes while they adjusted to the sudden brilliance. Stepping carefully into the footprints that Shinichi had left earlier (the fewer signs of her presence, the better, she supposed) she stopped beside the first dark-green cabinet.

Her heart was pounding in anticipation. The key, which she had strung on a chain and hung around her neck, felt cold against her chest. She reached into her pajama top and pulled it out, unclasping the chain. She inserted it in the second drawer's lock, remembering that the first contained information that was solely about the Black Organization.

It fit perfectly, and turned easily. She grasped the drawer's handle and pulled.

It was surprisingly heavy. As it opened, files upon files greeted her. She gaped, dumbfounded, and only now starting to realize the enormity of the task. How could she ever finish reading all of those in time to be of help to Shinichi?

'But it's the only thing I can do right now, even if it does seem impossible. I'll just have to do my best.'

Ran took out the first file and closed the drawer, hearing the automatic lock click. Resolutely, she exited the attic and went back to the guest room she was using, settling herself in a reclining position on the bed.

She opened the folder.

On the first page was written,

_**Roller Coaster Murder Case and Following Events: First Encounter with the Black Organization and the Birth of Edogawa Conan.**_

_Dear Ran,_

_Part of these files have been written in a most unprofessional way, I'm afraid._

_I discovered that I felt better about lying to you if I told you the truth in another form. Therefore, I divided each file into three parts, the first being an account directly addressed to you, with my feelings and thoughts recorded along with the facts. The second part will be a proper report of events, with no personal input or interpretation._

_The last pages of each file contains information about the people involved in each of the cases. I don't think you'll be interested in that, but if you ever decide to show these to the authorities, they'll be useful._

_This first case took place on that day at Tropical Land; you remember the one._

_A man was beheaded on the rollercoaster. The murderer was his ex-girlfriend, who was a gymnast. Since you were present for that part, I won't write it all down._

_Instead, I'll skip to the part I'm sure you're dying to know about: what happened after I left you?_

_Remember those men in black suits that were sitting at the back of the rollercoaster car? They were members of the Black Organization. If you're reading this, then I've probably written you a letter or something and you already vaguely know what I'm talking about._

_They're the ones who made me disappear._

_In fact, they think I'm dead. I'm hoping to keep it that way. Don't worry, I'll explain everything in time._

_Here goes._

_The man in black I had seen skulking about and dashed off to follow was the fat, dark-haired one wearing sunglasses. I'm ashamed to say I didn't think about the guy's partner (the blonde, tall one) and how he could also be around somewhere near. Beginner's mistake, I know, and I've regretted it ever since._

_Anyway, the guy was going to meet someone, I've forgotten exactly who—you'll know why in a minute—to carry out a blackmail operation. I hid behind a wall nearby and spied on the two of them, and then I took out my camera to collect some proof._

_But then I realized, too late, that there was someone behind me._

_I barely had time to glance over my shoulder before something hit the back of my head so hard I thought my skull would break apart. It hurt so much I felt sick. I just wanted to pass out._

_As it was, I was barely conscious, but I could make out the voices of the two people standing near me._

_Predictably, the one who'd hit me was the long-haired man in black—-the other guy's partner. And now they were standing over me debating how they were going to kill me. Gorilla-guy (the fat one) asked if he could shoot me. The blonde told him no, the cops were still around from that case on the rollercoaster earlier._

_He said it was better to poison me. Great._

_I heard him mention that "the Organization" had never tested it on a human being. I was going to be the first lab rat. Even better._

_Though I suppose I can't complain, seeing as that's the only reason I'm still alive._

_They fed me the poison. I was so dazed from that hit to the head (I probably had a concussion) that I couldn't do anything to resist. If anything, I was just hoping that little red and white pill would make the pain go away._

_It didn't. It made it worse._

_I was vaguely aware that I had been left alone to die._

_My body was growing hotter and hotter, burning from the inside out. I seriously thought I was going to die._

_It felt like my bones were melting and the rest of me was simply being vaporized… I was almost right._

_Two-thirds of my body went up in smoke. Only, I didn't realize it until much later._

_When I woke up, my head was still hurting like few things hurt, and I was so dizzy I couldn't sit up. Then someone shone a light in my face and made the headache worse._

_It took me a while to figure out it was a police officer, and he was talking to me. There was another one a little further who was speaking into his radio._

_I couldn't remember what had happened to me. All I knew was that my head hurt like hell, I felt sick, there was blood in my right eye, I was swimming in my clothes for some reason, and the guy that was speaking to me must obviously be blind or stupid because he kept talking to me in that soft, reassuring voice you use with traumatized or lost children and calling me "little boy"._

Ran threw her head back, gasping, only to meet the wall. She doubled over, cradling her sore skull, wondering dazedly how much worse the hit that Shinichi had taken that night, courtesy of the blonde man in black, had been.

She rested her elbows on her knees, burying her face in her hands. She felt sick. _Debating how to kill him? Untested poison?_ She wasn't naive enough to believe that Shinichi surviving that night was anything short of a miracle.

And then there was the whole _body going up in smoke_ thing, and perfectly fitting clothes suddenly being too big...

'Is he saying what I think he is? What I've been suspecting all along? But that's…'

Crazy. Impossible. Insane.

And the most rational person that she knew was telling her that it had, in fact, happened.

'No way… There's just no way…'

She had to keep reading. Perhaps he would later explain that all that had just been an impression, or some kind of insane dream. Nightmare.

'Scratch that. I know that's not going to happen. But going nuts about it isn't going to help. I can rant all I want later, right now I need to read all of these files so that I can go save Shinichi's butt. Then I'll kick it when I'm sure he's not going to die.'

With a huff, she brushed her hair out of her face and leaned over the documents again.

_I was too damn confused to make any sense of the situation, especially when the officer radioed his pals, saying he'd found an injured PRIMARY SCHOOL student who might be related to some criminal case._

_I had just been attacked and been the victim of attempted homicide; never mind how I survived, this policeman was strange, and I needed to take care of that head injury because my brain was trying to hammer its way out of my skull and it had to stay in._

_So I ran home._

_Or, I would have if my legs had been just a little longer._

_Instead, I tripped on the hem of my now huge pants after just a few minutes of running and realized two things. One, I was completely winded after this short run, which was NOT normal, and two, I really hadn't made it very far from Tropical Land._

_On top of that, it had started to rain, and I was starting to get cold._

_To stand up, I was forced to lean on a closed store's front door. The coolness of the glass on my palm made me look over, and I saw my reflection._

_I was staring into the face of my seven year-old self._

_This impossible sight was enough to shock most of the haze from my mind. I soon made the connection: that so-called poison I'd been fed had to be the cause of my transformation._

_I'm ashamed to admit that I started to panic. I started running again, getting soaked in the process, but this time I made it all the way to my house. The familiar sight succeeded in calming me down some, and I checked the time on my (much too big) watch. It was 17h36._

Ran paused to reminisce.

At five-thirty, she'd been home for a while already, and was debating calling Shinichi or making supper for her lazy father. That had turned out to be an easy choice to make. She'd picked up the phone, intent on giving the Holmes fanatic a piece of her mind.

Only, no one had picked up, except for the answering machine.

Kogoro had tried to reassure her, saying that Kudo Yuusaku had probably taken his son out for dinner. This prompted her to sharply remind her father that Shinichi had been living on his own for three years already, since his parents had moved to America, and he really didn't go out to eat that often.

Ran had then come to the conclusion that something must have happened to her best friend after they'd separated, and dashed off to his house in order to confirm her suspicions.

Instead of the Kudo mansion being empty, though, she had come upon Agasa-hakase and… Conan…

_As I reached in vain for the handle to the front gate of my house, I was made acutely aware of my height, or lack thereof. I couldn't get into my own house!_

_I probably would have panicked some more if part of the wall next to me hadn't suddenly been blown outwards._

_From the debris emerged Agasa-hakase, and I felt relieved. I could always count on my eccentric neighbor to assist me when I was in trouble._

_The only problem was getting him to believe me, because although he noticed my strong resemblance to the young Shinichi of his memories, he is, after all, a scientist. A person shrinking back to their childhood self would seem pretty farfetched to anyone and, if it did happen, due rather to the supernatural than to science._

_I had never been so glad to have bragged about and repeatedly demonstrated my detective skills to him during the time I'd known him._

_I quickly deduced that he had been running home in the rain from the Columbo restaurant and added one of my usual catch phrases at the end (I don't precisely remember which one) in hopes of making the similarities between Kudo Shinichi and… well, myself, unmistakable._

_I succeeded, and Hakase opened the gate to my house for me and followed me in._

_I found my old primary school suit in one of the storage closets (can't believe Mom actually kept all my baby things and old toys) and changed into it to find that it fit perfectly._

_This was yet another reminder that the trouble I was in was real, and that the men in black had at least taken my identity in exchange for my life._

_It was humiliating. I could barely run for fifteen minutes without stopping, I couldn't reach the handle of the front gate, and I could now fit into my childhood clothes._

_I straight-out asked Hakase to make me a cure. His answer was that he couldn't do much without a sample of the drug that had done this to me in the first place. I then swore that I would find the men in black and get the needed sample from them in order to return to my normal self._

_Despite having a clear goal, I probably would have broken down at some point or another that evening, had you not come to my house._

_Instead, I was forced to think of a way to conceal my true identity, because according to Hakase, if those men were truly part of a criminal organization, at the first sign of my being alive, they would come back to finish the job. And then maybe go after any and all people connected to me in any way._

_You weren't supposed to find me, hiding behind that desk. The only reason you did was because I hit my head (my poor, abused head) on it after putting on my father's old glasses (boy, is he blind) as a disguise. Well, sort of, but it's enough for Clark Kent, so..._

_I barely had time to pop out the lenses and put the frames back on before you turned me around._

_You were on your knees, and you were still taller than me. I probably would have started brooding over that if you hadn't asked me my name._

_I backed up against the bookshelf behind the desk and tried to think of a suitable one, but all I could do in my confused state was to glance out the corner of my eye and blurt out the first names that I saw: Edogawa Ranpo and Arthur Conan Doyle._

_Thus was born Edogawa Conan._

She leaned back, her heart pounding madly in her chest.

'So that's what happened…'

Ran felt overwhelmed. She was terribly confused about all of this, even though she was only reading about it. If it had actually happened to her…

Her respect for Kudo Shinichi jumped up another notch.

'I wonder… What would I have done in that situation? Probably run home screaming hysterically and tell everything to dad. Afterwards I would have holed up in my room and refused to come out until I woke up from this horrible nightmare.' She frowned. 'Or…'

Her father probably wouldn't have been the best person to go to in that situation, and her mother lived too far away. The only other options would have been Sonoko, or Shinichi.

Now, Sonoko and Ran were close friends, but the Suzuki heiress' tongue had a talent for flapping wildly, voluntarily or not.

'I would have gone to Shinichi. Definitely.'

It was somewhat painful that Shinichi had not been able to turn to _her _for help. She understood why that was so, but was still left with the feeling of not having been there in her best friend's time of need.

She looked down. There wasn't much left to read.

_Things went so fast from there. Actually, they'd been going fast ever since I had gotten caught by those men, but I had, until that moment, still felt like I had some measure of control._

_Then Hakase suggested you take "Conan" in and things were out of my hands._

_Though his reasons were sound—that your father, being a detective, might come by some information about the criminals I was looking for—I couldn't help, from that point on, but slightly resent him for throwing me into a situation that would make the both of us suffer unnecessarily._

_Please don't tell him about that, by the way. Hakase has been of great help to me and been very brave, too, for voluntarily involving himself in something this dangerous._

_On that day, you told Conan that you loved Shinichi. I don't know if you recall the way I blushed, but my whole face felt hot._

_This had been the worst night of my life, and suddenly it wasn't so bad. That's how happy I was to hear you say those words._

_You also "showed me where you live", and where I would be living for an indeterminate amount of time. You then proceeded, for the first time but surely not the last, to make me feel guilty as hell for lying to you._

_I nearly broke and told you everything right there. If your dad hadn't come yelling and stumbling down the stairs, I think I would have._

_Yeah, I would have. And now, I can't help but wonder whether that would have been a good or bad thing._

_Well, this concludes the first chapter of my story. I really hope that you won't ever have to read this, Ran, that I will somehow turn back into Kudo Shinichi without ever needing to put the burden of this knowledge on your shoulders._

_**Roller coaster murder, first encounter with the Black Organization and birth of Edogawa Conan: case closed.**_

She closed the folder carefully after rifling through the report and information pages, which contained cold hard facts about the victim and the murderer of the roller coaster murder case, as well as pictures of them and sketches of the two men in black.

Putting the documents on the side table, she glanced at the clock. 11h43.

Her eyelids drooping, she decided to get some sleep in order to get an early start the next morning. Also, she needed to digest what she had just read, and felt unable to do so without a rested mind.

Lying on an unfamiliar bed, under cold sheets, in Shinichi's empty house, a sense of unexplainable loss, and at the same time, relief, washed over her, and she wept bittersweet tears into the pillow.

Japanese word translation :

Otou-san : dad

Ittekimasu : I'm leaving

Hakase : Professor

I do very much appreciate constructive reviewing. If something bothers you about the story, the grammar, the layout of the text, etc. I want to know about it. That does not give you leave to flame. Insults, negative comments with no explanations and the like will also be thoroughly ignored.

Short positive reviews will not improve my writing but will boost my ego, which is also nice. They are quite welcome. Thank you!


	4. CompanyPresident's Daughter's Kidnapping

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain some heart-stopping revelations… and insight into Shinichi's mind. Takes place after 5th movie, hypothesizing that Gin decided to investigate the survivors of the explosion from the bombs in the reception area. Events then precipitate and story diverges from canon.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Review response : 

**To inksilverblue** : Thank you very much for your long constructive review! I am glad you liked the descriptions, I wrote them while trying to make it easy for readers to visualize. As for Ran's thoughts about Conan being Shinichi, I am planning to elaborate on that in this chapter as in the previous one, it was late at night and she was sort of in shock about the whole thing. As the story progresses she'll realize and recall some things (including the bathing together stuff... hehe) so more depth will be added.

You are absolutely right about Conan being gone somewhere with no explanation. I so did not think about that. Plot hole! I'll try to put in a plausible explanation in this chapter.

Thanks again for reviewing and please keep up the constructive comments, they are greatly appreciated!

Author's note : I am having trouble with the time frame of this story. Since the series of 600+ episodes seems to take place in under a year (haven't seen anything about Conan or his friends having a birthday), it's hard to tell how much time passes between episodes, and even harder with movies since they're not technically part of the storyline. If anyone has suggestions they are welcome to PM me.

Also, suggestions about which episodes would be important to fully include as 'files' are also welcome. I will skip over most fillers except if they contain elements for Shinichi's character development or for the ShinRan relationship.

_Blabla_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

_"Blabla"_ : someone speaking through a phone

**Chapter 3**

The morning brightened up the mansion considerably.

Ran woke to the sight of a warm beam of sunlight streaming in between the drapes and, hearing birdsong outside, felt a little more confident in her ability to handle the revelations that waited for her in a filing cabinet upstairs. Surely, now that the ice had been broken, the process would be smoother. Perhaps not completely, but a little better, at least.

After a hearty breakfast—she needed all the strength she could get—she, again, ascended to the attic to put the first file back and to take out the second, remembering to step in her previous footsteps, all the while thinking about Conan's 'secret identity'.

'I can't believe he was right next to me all this time,' Ran thought. 'It's been _months_! And all those phone calls, and those times when I suspected he really was Shinichi and... wait, didn't I see him as Shinichi once after Conan-kun appeared? No, more than once! Did he find a way to turn back then?'

She tried to recall the times when she had seen Shinichi as himself rather than Conan, and came to an abrupt halt right as she was about to reach the attic stairs, new file in hand.

'Wait... I didn't just see _Shinichi _before, I saw him _with_ Conan-kun! ...Also more than once! That's why I never managed to convince myself that they were one and the same! How did _that_ happen?'

Ran stood there for another minute, trying to puzzle it out, before shaking her head exasperatedly. She probably wouldn't know how he had done it without reading the files. Because, of course, each time she had seen Shinichi, there had been a case and detective work to do, so somewhere in that drawer there would be corresponding files.

'Maybe I should check those out right away... But no, I'd probably miss some important information that way. Oooh, darn him for infecting me with detective thought patterns! Now my curiosity is going to eat me up alive until I get to them!'

She proceeded to assemble all the things that she thought she would need—such as the phone, a bottle of water, a box of tissues just in case, and a light snack—in the library, which was not only the perfect place to read but was also right next to a bathroom.

'Where are you now, Shinichi?' she wondered as she caught sight of one of his favorite books, _The Sign of Four_ by-of course-Arthur Conan Doyle, lying desolately on a side table and starting to gather dust. 'Are you hiding somewhere from those men in black? Or did you stumble across yet another case and are doing what you do best?'

Which reminded her-the morning before, Conan had told the Mouris that he was going to Agasa's place to test out a new detective game the professor had designed. Given what she had read in Shinichi's letter, it was clear that if _Conan_ had gone to the scientist's house, it was probably not for any length of time, and _certainly not_ to play games.

'Wherever you are, I hope you're okay,' Ran prayed disconsolately.

She sighed as she made herself comfortable on one of the green velvet couches with an adjoining cherry-wood table—on which she had put her supplies—and picked up the phone. Dialing Sonoko's number, she mentally rehearsed her excuse for not coming to school and not being home.

_"Moshi-moshi, Suzuki residence,"_ came a voice at the other end.

"Ah—hello, this is Mouri Ran, may I speak to Sonoko, please?"

_"Please wait a moment."_

She did, and was rewarded with the enthusiastic voice of her bubbly friend.

_"RAN! To what do I owe this honor?"_

Despite the circumstances, Ran giggled. "Ah, Sonoko? I just wanted to tell you I won't be at school for a few days. See, I'm doing something for my mom, which my dad doesn't know about, and I need to be away from home for a while. I told Dad that I would be spending the week at your place, so if he calls, which he probably won't, could you please make up an excuse for me not being able to talk to him?"

Sonoko could only keep two kinds of secrets. Painful secrets, because she had a good heart and didn't want to see people she cared about hurt, and secrets from Ran's father, because she just liked to annoy that man.

So, predictably, she agreed.

_"Of course, of course, he won't get anything from me, promise!"_

"Thanks. I knew I could count on you," said Ran with a faint smile.

_"Hey, what are friends for?"_

She gave a strained laugh, guilt churning in her belly. "Listen, I have to go. I don't know when I'll be able to call you next… sorry."

Unbeknownst to her friend, she was apologizing for more than just that.

"'_Kay, whenever you get the chance! See ya!"_

"Ja, mata ne."

She put the phone down with a sigh.

Lying to Sonoko hadn't been easy, but it hadn't exactly been hard, either. The lie had come out quite smoothly, her tone even. Did that make her a bad friend?

She shook her head. Now was not the time for such reflections. Picking up the folder she had brought, she plunged into the account of Edogawa Conan's first case.

_**The Company President's Daughter's Kidnapping Case**_

_ The first file left off when your father fell down the agency stairs, yelling about his first case in six months. I probably would have been interested, even if your dad hadn't mentioned that the culprit had apparently been a man in black. It was a kidnapping, after all, and you know I didn't think much of your father's detective skills._

_ I still don't, but he's a little bit better than I thought. He has his moments, and all._

_ Anyway, we tagged along with your dad to the crime scene (okay, so I ran off and you had no choice but to follow). For the first time, I had to put my acting skills to the test._

_ I'll probably say this a lot, but acting like a child when you're really a teenager is HUMILIATING. Not to mention difficult. I'm getting better—is that a good thing or a bad thing?—but I still seem like a strange kid, because I forget to fidget, or I slip up and start talking like my old self, or… you get the picture._

_ My reaction once we arrived was a prime example of my slipping up. "Could you describe the kidnappers?" I asked when I got my hands on the picture of the missing girl._

_ I still can't believe how quickly I forgot about my, uh, __condition__. Or how badly I slipped up._

_ Your dad asked the butler to describe the kidnapping, which he did. Apparently the girl had been abducted in the very backyard in which we were standing._

_ It came to my attention that the kidnapper had to have been pretty confident to risk coming to the girl's house to kidnap her instead of doing it when she got out of school. Plus, he'd been seen by someone._

_ On top of that, the butler said that the kidnapper had escaped with the kid by climbing a pine tree next to which a guard dog was tethered. A guard dog that would bark at any stranger who approached it._

_ That's when I realized that the butler had to be the culprit, and that he'd made up the whole story about the kidnapper. _

_ I had to ask-loudly-if the dog would bark at any stranger before Occhan connected the dots and confronted Aso-san about it. _

_ Aso-san admitted to having kidnapped his master's daughter… Was the case closed?_

_ Turned out it wasn't, remember? The thought had barely crossed my mind when the victim's father received a phone call… from a real kidnapper (because Aso-san had only "kidnapped" the kid at her own request, to get her dad's attention)._

_ Akiko-chan, when the criminal put her on the phone, managed to tell us that she was in a school's storage room and that she could see a big chimney out the window._

_ According to a map one of the servants had brought out, there were five schools nearby that matched the kid's information, because only factories and bathhouses had that kind of big chimney._

_ I took off on Jumbo's—the guard dog's—back and went to each of the schools… only to end up empty-handed._

_ I was sure of my reasoning, but Akiko-chan was not in any of the five schools I had checked._

_ That's when I spotted it._

_ It was a tall building, rather wide, too, from where I was, but it didn't have much depth…_

_ By going around to its side, I discovered that it could be mistaken for a chimney, and the only school from which this building could be seen from the side was Futatsubashi school._

_ I found the kid alright. The dog attacked the kidnapper, but was driven off before I could untie her and escape. I then proceeded to get beaten up pathetically, seeing as I had nowhere near the strength of my teenage body-the kidnapper basically laughed at the soccer ball I kicked at him, which he blocked one-handed. _

_ Thank God you came, Ran. Again. Otherwise things might have ended very badly for Akiko-chan and I._

_ Back at the Tani house, Akiko-chan spilled everything. Her father agreed to take a vacation with her. And they lived happily ever after._

_ Meanwhile, I still had to deal with the changes I had been made aware of. _

_ For the first time, I had introduced myself (to Akiko-chan, when I found her) as Edogawa Conan, detective. And for the first time I had to give all the credit of solving the case to your dad. After all, who would believe that a seven year-old boy had solved a kidnapping case?_

_ I… really didn't like that thought. And my pride stung like you wouldn't believe._

_ But then Akiko-chan thanked me for rescuing her (though when you asked about that, I told you that she was probably talking about your father), and I felt a little better about it._

_ I really hope that I won't have to do this for long, Ran, but I'm getting a rather bad feeling about this. This case had absolutely nothing to do with the men in black or their organization._

_ Better luck next time, do you think?_

_**The company president's daughter's kidnapping: case closed.**_

Ran could remember that particular case quite well herself. Mostly because she was shocked at Conan's disregard for danger, and at the fact that he'd figured out where Tani Akiko was being held before all of the adults did.

Such a peculiar little boy, she had thought.

Now she knew better.

She felt sorry for Shinichi, whom she knew loved to boast about his exploits and skills. Giving the credit to Mouri Kogoro, whom he considered the height of incompetence, had to have dealt a big blow to his ego.

In spite of feeling this way, and wanting to read all of the files to see whether they would be more or less like this one, she couldn't help but feel a little desperation pushing at the edges of her mind.

In the ten months that Edogawa Conan had lived with the Mouris, he still hadn't managed to return to his true self. What chance did a seven-year-old child-even if only in appearance-have against a criminal organization?

Maybe she should tell her father and Inspector Megure about the files in the first drawer right away, instead of waiting a whole week.

She bit her lip, unsure. Then again, Shinichi had spent ten months gathering information about the organization, and he was the best detective she knew-though she'd never tell him that. Surely he would know what they were dealing with better than she did, and so was in a better position to decide upon a course of action.

No, disregarding Shinichi's instructions would be too big of a risk to take, she decided. She could accidentally end up making the situation worse if she didn't first bother to look at the whole picture.

So she went back to the attic, intent on bringing back three new folders. However, when she had, once more, made herself comfortable on the couch she'd selected, a shrill ringing sound made her pause.

She half-turned to see phone's screen blinking on and off in synch with the ringing.

'Should I answer it? What if it's Dad, or Shinichi's parents, or… Wait, didn't Shinichi's phone have caller ID?'

She picked up the device and glanced at the screen.

_Edogawa C._

The shock of seeing that name made her gasp and fumble to answer.

"M-moshi-moshi?"

_"…Ah… Ran…?"_ came Conan's uncertain voice.

"Conan-ku—I mean, um, S-Shinichi?"

_"Ah, so you've starting reading already. I thought so, but I wasn't sure, so…"_

'That's definitely him,' thought Ran. 'Though the voice is higher and younger sounding… The tone and inflections are the same.'

For a moment, everything she wanted to say, to ask, to scream even, gathered in what felt like a huge lump blocking her throat. She didn't know where to begin, didn't know how to make him understand what the revelations of the last day had done to her.

She didn't know how to tell him that she was afraid, so _afraid_, for him, for herself, even though she'd only known for less than a full day, when _he_ had been bearing it for so long without breaking.

The moment passed. She gathered herself together, taking a deep, calming breath, and spoke. "Never mind that right now," she said sharply. "Where are you now? Are you safe?"

_"If I wasn't, I wouldn't have called,"_ he replied curtly.

It was so strange to hear Conan's voice so much deeper and mature.

_"And never mind where I am. Did you see anyone suspicious outside the mansion?"_

"Uh, no, I don't think so."

_"You have to make sure next time you go in or out. Are you still there?"_

"Yes."

_"Don't use the electricity or the water. They might check the meters to see if anyone came by."_

"Ano… Shinichi…"

_"What is it?"_

"Are they really that dangerous?"

There was a long silence.

_"…Yes."_

Somehow, that simple response scared her more than if he had started lecturing her about exactly how dangerous they were.

Japanese words :

Occhan : a familiar way of saying 'uncle'

Edit : someone noticed some of the dialogue lacked the quotation marks and pointed out how confusing it was. The thing is, I had put some symbols, eh, don't know what they're called in English, sort of like parenthesis but pointy in the middle instead of rounded. Anyway, the site doesn't seem to be able to process those, because I went back and edited but nothing changed. So instead I put quotation marks and italics to signify it's someone speaking through a phone. Sorry for the confusion. I blame the site.

So, what did you guys think? Again, constructive reviews, including criticism, are welcome. Thank you for reading!


	5. Idol's Locked Room Murder Case

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain some heart-stopping revelations… and insight into Shinichi's mind. Takes place after 5th movie, hypothesizing that Gin decided to investigate the survivors of the explosion from the bombs in the reception area. Events then precipitate and story diverges from canon.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Review responses (for those who turned off the PM function) : 

**To Inksilverblue :**

Thank you for continuing to read and review so constructively! It is always useful to know what you like about the story. Also thanks for pointing out that the "" weren't showing up in the dialogue parts, I went back to edit and hopefully there won't be any more problems of the sort. Feel free to tell me if you see anything else that's missing.

To answer your question I am not Japanese, I am half-Canadian and half-Vietnamese. However I know much more Japanese than I do Vietnamese, in large part because it's much easier to learn (the spoken part at least). I have been teaching myself the language using books and CDs, and of course listening to anime and songs. I am fairly confident of the correct use of the vocabulary I do know. Thanks for noticing! And please keep reading my story, I will do my best to deliver the same quality of work in return!

Author's note : 

Concerning the time frame of this story, I have decided to take the advice of one of my reviewers, , and not try to situate it. There will be a timeline of events in relation to one another but no mention of dates or months or how long ago this or that happened.

One question has popped up more than once : will I be writing about EVERY episode? Answer : NO. I will leave irrelevant fillers to the side and focus on the episodes and movies that are important either to a) Shinichi's character development, b) plot development or c) ShinRan relationship development. I have received a few suggestions as to which episodes to write about, which I greatly appreciate and encourage. I have a good memory but not good enough to remember the content of 600+ episodes and 15 movies (although I remember the movies quite well).

_Blabla_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

**Chapter 4**

They had exchanged a few more awkward words, both feeling the underlying tension that had never been present in any of their previous conversations.

Ran hadn't been able to keep from cautioning him and telling him to eat and sleep as much as he could because surely he would need his strength for whatever perils he would face.

She had also tried to talk him into letting her help actively instead of playing the role of failsafe.

Naturally, she had failed. She could bully him into nearly anything except things that might jeopardize her own safety.

So now, after they had hung up and silence once again filled the spacious house, she was left with the knowledge that he would once again be heading into danger, and would not be contacting her again until it was safe to do so.

To keep from thinking too much about it-and probably working herself up into a panic-she picked up file number three and opened it up, even more determined to read as much as she could. The more she read, the more she would know, and knowledge was power, wasn't it?

Maybe if she knew enough she could find some more arguments to use against Shinichi the next time he called and expected her to blithely sit still and wait while he risked his life.

* * *

><p><em>Still reading, eh? At that thought, I can feel a little of the weight lift from my shoulders, even though I'm no closer to solving The Case, as I've started calling it. <em>

_**Idol's Locked Room Murder Case**_

_ Alright, here's the second case I've solved as Edogawa Conan. Hope there won't be too many more—you have no idea how much I miss my old body. …And you. And I know, that was incredibly sappy. But I seriously don't care right now. Well, not much anyway._

_ A few things of note happened before the actual case._

_1- I enlisted into Teitan primary school (again), where I met three persistent little kids called Yoshida Ayumi, Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko and Kojima Genta. They would later become slightly involved with the case._

_2- Hakase gave me one of his new inventions : a voice-changing bowtie. By turning the dial on the back and speaking into it, I can apparently mimic any voice I hear._

_ As I'm sure you remember, Okino Yoko actually showed up at the Agency, on the third day since I had been shrunk. We were all shocked, of course—for all of three seconds before your dad scrambled away at Mach-3 to put on one of his better costumes (according to him, anyway) in order to impress the lady. _

_ I remember thinking "and I'm depending on this moron to find clues about the men in black? I'm doomed" before Okino-san started to explain why she had come here along with her manager, Yamagishi-san._

_ Apparently she had a stalker, which is really not that unusual for idols. But this one had actually managed to get inside her apartment and change the placement of her furniture, so he was a bit more dangerous than the average stalker. _

_ I'm surprised your dad let us come along to Okino-san's apartment, though he warned us not to get in the way of his work. It's probably because you're the one who asked. _

_ By the way, it's still really strange to hear you call me "Conan-kun" all the time, while looking __down__ at me._

_ Moving on, Okino-san had barely opened the door when she screamed. And then her scream was followed by three more: the three kids I mentioned earlier, who I found had stowed away in the trunk of Okino-san's car. Geez. Genta fainted, too. Though I probably can't fault him for that, he IS a kid, after all._

_ You probably remember what we found when we looked inside: a corpse. From there the police was called, and I was glad to see Megure-keibu again. He seems like a good, reliable man, and he has the same opinion regarding your dad's "investigating skills" as I do._

_ At first glance, it seemed like a murder: the corpse had a knife in the back. But a combination of things revealed that it was not so._

_ However, when I tried to explain these things, I slipped up again. I started pointing them out with my usual tone of voice, too serious for a child. Luckily Occhan and Megure-keibu were too busy frowning at me for the words themselves to notice the tone._

_ The first clue was that the heating was turned on rather high in the apartment, when Okino-san never set it that way and was sure she had turned it off before leaving. At first I thought this could have been used to mask the true time of death._

_ Second, there were dried watermarks on the floor close to the body. Heh, one thing this body is good for: I don't have to bend down as much when looking for evidence. _

_ Third, in the messed-up room, only a chair was still upright, right behind the body._

_ When Megure-keibu asked Okino-san and her manager if they knew the victim, Yamagishi-san said they had to take a closer look. Then he "slipped" in the drying blood and fell on top of the body, in a rather fake way, and I caught him quickly taking something from the hand of the victim. _

_ When he got up, both he and Okino-san denied having seen the man before, and he put his hand in his pocket… letting something fall to the floor._

_ I earned some strange looks from the "adults" when I ran to put my foot on top of it, but they turned their attention back to the body almost immediately._

_ The "object" turned out to be a single, long pale brown hair. _

_ It's true that when someone is killed in a sealed room, the culprit is most likely to be the owner of that room, as they have the key. In this case, that meant Okino-san was the primary suspect. But then, it was also possible to make spare keys, and she had given one to her manager, so he was also a suspect. _

_ And of course, Occhan jumped at this possibility, speculating that Yamagishi-san had been dumped by Okino-san and wanted revenge, which made absolutely no sense because the victim was supposedly a stranger whose death therefore wouldn't affect Okino-san any further than the obvious trauma of finding a corpse in her apartment. _

_ As to why Okino-san could not be the culprit… "Because she's cute and kind to everyone"? Please. What kind of a reason is that?_

* * *

><p>Ran lowered the papers and leaned forward, laughing helplessly. She could just picture the look on Shinichi's face as he listened to her father's reasoning. He who thrived on cold hard facts to base his reasoning on, like any 'true' detective, must have had a hard time refraining from criticizing Mouri Kogoro's 'deductions'.<p>

Unfortunately, at the time she had been watching her father make a scene while accusing Yamagishi and hadn't seen 'Conan's' expression.

'This is an unexpected bonus to reading these files,' Ran mused as she turned the page. 'For the cases I was present for, I can actually compare the events from my point of view with Shinichi's.'

She wondered how many cases she _hadn't_ been there for, though. Those would have to be read thoroughly and attentively so as not to miss any potentially important details.

* * *

><p><em> Unfortunately Yamagishi-san had conveniently lost the spare key a few days before, a story that Occhan refused to believe until Yoko-san confirmed it. <em>

_ While your dad was making wild and aggressive accusations against Yamagishi-san, I was examining the room for any clues that might help solve the case._

_ I'm afraid I rather made a nuisance of myself to the investigative team, though. I certainly received more than a few odd and disgruntled looks as I crawled around to look under furniture and searched all the nooks and crannies._

_ Finally my search turned up the clue I was looking for. There was a golden earring underneath the sofa, but I had to use my voice-changing bowtie, set to the voice of a grown man, before the inspector would take a look. The inspector would have listened to me - Conan - but Occhan had to butt in._

_ And he was the one who had told us not to get in the way. As I saw it, it was more the other way around._

_ The earring turned out to belong to the third suspect, Ikezawa Yuuko, who had become a star around the same time as Yoko-san. According to Yamagishi-san, Ikezawa-san resented Yoko-san because she had gotten the main role in the drama they were acting in. A possible motive?_

_ Naturally, when Ikezawa-san was brought to the apartment she proceeded to deny ever having set foot in it before. She had supposedly lost the earring we had found, and the person the security guard had seen that looked like her was just that. _

_ Then, bizarrely, she had to use the bathroom. I don't know about you, Ran, but if I was called in as a suspect to an apartment where police and detectives were gathered and with a corpse lying around, I would have either used the bathroom _before_ going, or held it in. So either this woman was absent-minded and _really_ had to go, or she had nerves of steel as well as a clear conscience (or confidence in her alibi in the event that she was guilty)._

_ In the next moments, I found out several things. One, Ikezawa-san had a rather abrasive personality. Two, she also had a temper. Three, she really did strongly dislike Yoko-san. Four, Ikezawa-san and Yoko-san looked exactly the same from behind. Five, Ikezawa-san somehow knew precisely where the bathroom was without asking for directions, even though she, supposedly, had never been in that apartment before._

_ As I tried to point this out to the adults, Occhan interfered (again), though Ayumi-chan provided a nice distraction by kicking him in the shin. I was hard pressed not to snicker, but then you were hugging me from behind and saying how 'Shinichi' would have solved this case easily, were he here. "I wonder where he went," you said. _

_ You have a knack for setting me off-balance. The physical contact, which I wasn't and _still_ am not used to, combined with that question when I was RIGHT THERE, made me blurt out a rather forceful reassurance that 'Shinichi' would surely return soon and not to worry._

_ I kicked myself hard mentally for that slip, and lamely tried to correct it by adding "probably, I guess". My mom's acting skills clearly were not genetically transferred to me._

_ Back to the case. _

_ I found it peculiar that Ikezawa-san not only knew where the bathroom was, but knew how to use an elaborate lighter in the shape of the Statue of Liberty at first try while still maintaining that this was the first time she had set foot in Yoko-san's apartment._

_ At last, Megure-keibu and Occhan's detective instincts kicked in and they picked up on those things, after an innocent comment or two from me. Although Occhan again jumped to conclusions and wrongly accused Ikezawa-san of committing the murder to discredit Yoko-san, it actually led to the woman finally losing her composure and denying her involvement frantically._

_ Thus, she revealed she had stolen Yamagishi-san's spare key and snooped around the apartment more than once for any incriminating material she could use to cause a scandal. This had led to her encountering the victim, who had probably mistaken her for Yoko-san and assaulted her. In the scuffle, her earring had come loose and found its way under the sofa._

_ Though, according to her story she had not killed the man, but rather ran away from the apartment and from him._

_ Following that, an officer brought us the information pertaining to the dead man's identity. It turned out that Fujie Akiyoshi, 22 years old, had gone to the same Kounan high school as Yoko-san had. Despite her manager's obvious attempt to dismiss this information as mere coincidence, Yoko-san confessed that she knew the man. More than that, he was her ex-boyfriend from her high school years. As he had been the one to break up with her, this provided motive for Yoko-san to have killed him._

_ I had all the evidence I needed. Now was the time to put the pieces together. I did so in a relatively short time, during which Genta regained consciousness and Occhan made more wild accusations against Yamagishi-san._

_ The problem was, how to explain my reasoning and solve the case without blowing my cover? I could use my bowtie, but if I used a random voice it would appear disembodied and thus, not credible, and confusion would ensue as people tried to find the owner of it. If I used the voice of someone in the room, that person would immediately give the trick away. Unless I knocked them out..._

_ In the end, I apologized mentally as I kicked an ashtray in Occhan's direction, unfortunately nailing the still groggy Genta on the way and somehow ricocheting off the wall to strike Occhan on the back of the head. A case of 'two birds with one stone', in which striking the first bird was completely unnecessary. Oh well._

_ Your father managed to stagger his way backwards into a seat as the ashtray dropped to the floor, and I hid behind him to use the bowtie._

* * *

><p>Ran did not like where this was going. She had more than a few recollections of seeing her father suddenly cry out and 'stagger his way into a seat' or a seated position, depending on the location, actions which always preceded his famous brilliant deductions. Deductions made with poise and seriousness, in contrast to his initial 'wild accusations' and speculations.<p>

No, Ran did not like where this was leading _at all_, and was starting to harbor grave suspicions as to a good part of the cases Shinichi had solved as Conan.

Pressing her lips together tightly, she continued reading with narrowed eyes.

* * *

><p><em> Long story short, even though all three suspects had motive and opportunity, the case wasn't even a murder, but a suicide.<em>

_ The late Fujie-san had taken a knife, frozen the handle in a block of ice, set the whole thing on the floor so the blade would point upwards, and dropped backwards onto it from the only upright chair in the room. The ice had melted due to the heater he had turned on previously, and voilà! Instant murder case, no murderer needed._

_ The case ended on a rather tragic note. It was revealed that Fujie-san, who had been very much in love with Yoko-san, had been asked by her manager to break up with her for the sake of her career. After doing so, Fujie-san found himself unable to forget about her and tried to contact her again. And in the end, as Megure-keibu said after Fujie-san's diary was found in his apartment, "all because of a lie, a misunderstanding and a coincidence", he was driven to end his own life, believing that the person most dear to his heart wanted nothing to do with him anymore._

_ Fortunately, Yoko-san was able to recover fairly quickly from the emotional trauma. Though when we saw her on screen when walking home shortly after, it alarmed me when you said that if it were you... you wouldn't be able to move on the same way._

_ I promise, Ran, I'll do everything in my power to come back to you as Kudou Shinichi as quickly as possible. And I'll put the ones who did this to me behind bars for good, to keep you safe. I hope it won't take too long to come across a lead, though. It's incredibly frustrating to be right next to you and not be able to talk to you and comfort you when you cry._

_ I tried my best by calling you late in the evening, from a cabin not far from the Agency using the bowtie set to my own voice. Hopefully that made you feel a little better..._

* * *

><p>Ran could remember looking up at Yoko-san's face on the large screen they had seen on the front of a building, and admiring the older woman's strength. She also remembered shedding some tears, and that Conan had kept his face carefully averted as she cried. At the time she had thought it was out of politeness or awkwardness-children normally weren't used to dealing with crying grown-ups, right?-but now she knew the real reason.<p>

Shinichi's call _had_ made her feel better, she had to admit. Of course it did, after all it meant that nothing bad had happened to him if he was able to chat with her in such a carefree manner.

'If I only knew then.'

It was also the first time that he had used the 'I'm on a case' excuse to justify his absence. As time went on she had become more and more suspicious of that excuse. How many cases could possibly pop up that he had to take a prolonged leave from school, after all? But in the end, he hadn't technically lied to her. All this time, he _had_ been busy doing detective business, only it had been one huge case keeping him away instead of several small ones. One huge case in which he himself had been a victim.

She sniffled and reached for a tissue. 'Good thing I brought the box after all,' she mused, blowing her nose. In a ladylike fashion, of course.

Shifting, she scanned the rest of the page. There wasn't much left.

* * *

><p><em>On another note, I need to practice more with the voice-changing bowtie. I thought it didn't sound quite like your dad talking when I used it during the case. Also, I really need to get Hakase to invent something that could put Occhan to sleep without hurting him. Repeated head injuries would probably not do any favors to his detective skills.<em>

* * *

><p>A growl was building in her throat.<p>

'I don't have to be Sherlock Holmes to deduce that Agasa-hakase did manage to invent the sedative or whatever it is and that you've used it quite a lot, Shinichi. 'Sleeping Kogoro' indeed!'

When she got her hands on him...

* * *

><p><em>I don't particularly want to repeat the process of solving the case with your dad's voice, but I have an inkling that it's going to be necessary. So far he hasn't had much business, and the more serious cases are probably being taken to more well-known detective agencies. Maybe, if I keep solving cases like this, it'll boost Occhan's reputation and also his business. That way the chances of stumbling across a case in which the men in black are involved will also rise.<em>

_If anything, maybe you can take it as my working for room and board instead of being a complete freeloader?_

_**Idol's Locked Room Murder : case closed.**_

* * *

><p>Ran's anger was diminishing. 'When he puts it like that...'<p>

It was true that they had struggled a lot more on the financial side before 'Conan' had come to their house and 'Sleeping Kogoro' had made his appearance. Of course, they still weren't exactly rich, but she didn't have to limit herself to the food that was on sale when shopping for groceries, for example. And she worried a lot less that their savings would run out before the next case came along.

'I still don't like it, though.'

With a sigh, she closed the file and set it aside, picking up the next one.

* * *

><p>Japanese words :<p>

Occhan : a familiar way of saying 'uncle'

Hakase : professor

Keibu : inspector

* * *

><p>French word :<p>

Voilà! : there you go

* * *

><p>I am getting a lot more constructive reviews than I thought I would! So far nothing like "UPDATE RIGHT NOW" has shown up! I am very happy! Thank you for reading!<p> 


	6. Bullettrain bombing case

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain some heart-stopping revelations… and insight into Shinichi's mind. Takes place after 5th movie, hypothesizing that Gin decided to investigate the survivors of the explosion from the bombs in the reception area. Events then precipitate and story diverges from canon.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Review responses (for those who turned off the PM function) :

**To Inksilverblue :**

As I said in my last author's note, I'm not planning to do all of the cases, only those that matter.

I took your advice into account and tried to put in a little less detail in this chapter, because describing each episode exactly as it happened isn't my goal. My goal is to describe Shinichi's feelings during the cases for Ran to read. However, I'm still outlining a good part of the cases because not everyone will remember the episode and what it was about, especially if they have watched up to the 660th episode ; episode 5 will be long forgotten for some.

I do hope you find this chapter less boring though.

I haven't yet checked out your fics since I have trouble finding time to write my own, but I promise I will eventually. After all, you have given me long, constructive reviews to each chapter, it's the least I can do in return.

Enjoy the new chapter ;)

Author's note : chapter dedicated to **hislips**, whose enthusiasm and anticipation for the rest of this fic touched me and gave me the strength to finish this chapter before going to bed at 6:30 in the morning.

_Blabla_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

**Chapter 5**

Ran put down the file she had just read, one hand over her heart. The title, **The Coded Map of the City Case**, as well as a good part of the writing, hadn't seemed so bad. Shinichi loved codes, after all, and those three cute kids who were always around him had been the ones to find the code and start off the case. From there, it had seemed like a fun treasure-hunting game for the kids and a bit of welcome exercise for Shinichi's brain. To her, it seemed like one of the weirdest codes. Following neon signs? Really?

And Shinichi's hilarious attempts at acting more childlike, going so far as to wear an orange cap to school-probably clashing horribly with his old uniform-backwards, even. Though Shinichi was no fashion nut, he probably had at least an inkling of how ridiculous he would have looked ; no wonder she didn't remember Conan ever leaving her home with a cap on his head.

And surprise! There actually _was_ a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The only problem was, other people wanted it, too.

It turned out that the treasure had been hidden by Dino Cabane, leader of an italian robbery group. The man had been arrested shortly beforehand but his partners still at large were searching for the loot and had followed Shinichi and the kids all the way to the hidden location. Genta-kun had been roughed up a little before everyone was tied up. Thanks to Shinichi's quick thinking though, they had been able to knock the thieves out by dropping the bags of gold on them, before running to the nearest police station.

_It was the Detective Boys' first case._

Shinichi's exasperation at the name the children had given their little group had been plain in his writing : _'Ayumi-chan's a girl, if they hadn't noticed!'_ Even so, he seemed to accept it wryly in the end.

Speaking of the end... Ran giggled.

To demonstrate her admiration of Conan's 'coolness', little Ayumi had kissed him on the cheek. Shinichi had been understandably embarrassed of these actions coming from a seven year-old girl, and Ran herself had contributed to his mortification by telling 'Conan' what a cute girlfriend he had.

Ran giggled again, then sighed fondly. She was quite sure Shinichi had added that last bit just to cheer her up. It didn't have anything to do with the case, after all.

Smiling, she picked up the next file.

The smile dropped from her face as she read the title : **The Bullet-Train Bombing Case**. Opening up quickly to the first page, her eyes darted around trying to find the timeframe of this case. 'A _bomb_? Really? I hope it wasn't anything like what just happened a few days ago at the Twin Towers...'

* * *

><p><em>Still no leads on The Case, though I thought I had finally stumbled upon one in this case, completely by chance. Alas, I got my hopes up for nothing because of two look-alikes...<em>

_**The Bullet-Train Bombing Case**_

_Let me start off by saying that nobody got hurt in this one. The bomb exploded without harm, though it was sort of a close call. You can breathe now._

* * *

><p>Ran shook her head wryly. It was so like him to reassure her like this, before she had time to chew her fingernails off.<p>

* * *

><p><em> Agasa-hakase gave me more cool gadgets yesterday. <em>

_ The first is what he came up with in response to my complaints about not being able to take down the criminals I cornered or defend myself due to my... condition. Let's face it, a seven year-old body just cannot kick a soccer ball with the same force a seventeen year-old can. So Hakase designed these shoes so that, by turning a dial on the side, they would send electrical impulsions into the muscles of my feet, and I would then be able to kick much harder. As it would turn out, even harder than I used to before I got shrunk. _

_I have no words for how cool that is. Maybe I should ask Hakase to make me a pair in the right size when I get back to normal?_

_ The second is actually a modification to my dad's old glasses. There is now a tiny detachable microphone at the end of one of the arms, and an earphone at the end of the other. So I could, hypothetically, put the mike somewhere suspicious people are talking, walk away, turn on the earphone at the right frequency, and listen to every word they say._

_ I'm starting to feel like some sort of spy in a movie or something. Again, this is _cool_._

_ On to the case. _

_ This took place on the train we took to Kyoto to get to Occhan's friend's wedding. You remember, he had overslept and had to shave on the way there?_

* * *

><p>'Wait a minute, wait a minute! We were <em>there<em>? I didn't notice a thing! Except for 'Conan's' frequent need to go to the bathroom...'

She groaned and put her head in her hands. They had been riding on a train with a bomb and hadn't noticed _anything_. They had come close to being blown up-Shinichi had said as much in the beginning-and she had remained, to this day, completely clueless about it.

'And-oh my God, the kids were there, too...'

Sighing, she lifted her head and kept reading.

* * *

><p><em>And we had Genta, Mitsuhiko and Ayumi-chan with us-they were being noisy brats, too-for some reason.<em>

_ It was at this point that I started thinking about shoring up my cover. Your dad is growing suspicious because 'Conan's' parents haven't called even once to check up on their son. I'm not sure what I'm going to do about that, but I might have to bring my parents into this. Mom's disguises and acting skills could come in handy and Dad might be able to help me with The Case-I got my detective skills from him, after all. Though I don't want to involve ANYBODY else until I really have to ; I haven't forgotten Agasa-hakase's warning. My parents might be somewhat famous and influential, but they're not immortal._

_ Now, this case officially started when two guys looking remarkably like the pair who put me in this mess entered the car we were in. They sat not far from us, and I tried planting the microphone from my glasses under one of their seats... but you caught me. Luckily, Ayumi-chan put it in the ashtray instead, which ironically allowed me to hear the conversation better._

_ But I have to say this now. You were probably the biggest obstacle to solving this case in time. I know you were just being responsible and trying to look after 'Conan', but having to dodge you every five minutes was... frustrating. I'm not saying this to hurt your feelings or anything, but I did promise complete honesty in these files..._

_ Besides, at least you always take me seriously when I talk to you, unlike those two security guard buffoons who laughed at me when I tried to tell them there was a bomb on the train._

* * *

><p>Ran didn't quite know what to feel. Even though Shinichi had acknowledged that she had only done what any responsible person would have done when in charge of a young child, it still smarted a bit to be called an 'obstacle'. On the other hand, she was glad that Shinichi had kept his word and reported everything honestly. And finally, she could feel anger bubbling in her gut at the two guards. Laughing at a child who was trying to tell you something seriously could damage his self-esteem irrevocably!<p>

She chewed the inside of her cheek with a slight frown and decided she would read until the end before thinking about this part more.

* * *

><p><em> Moving on, the two guys in black ended up exchanging briefcases with someone on the train. By listening through the earphone of my super spy-glasses (I wasn't this hyped up about it <em>during_ the case, don't worry), I found out that the exchange had taken place on the dining car. They had tricked this person into taking the one with the bomb inside, telling them it contained information about gold, in exchange for 100 million ¥._

_ And then they left the train. I tried to go after them to collect more information... but you held me back. I got away from you again in twenty seconds, though. In retrospect, I must have been annoying you, making you run around after me for no apparent reason. Sorry about that._

_ The problem with this case was basically narrowing down the people likely to have taken the briefcase containing the bomb out of the hundreds of passengers on the train. With the kids' help (they can be helpful, sometimes, I guess), as well as the clues I had garnered from the two men's conversation, I was able to eliminate all but four people._

_ Here's my reasoning :_

_ The person didn't like cigarette smoke. Therefore, they were likely seated in a non-smoking car. One of the crooks had said the person would be 'admiring their last scenery', scenery which could best be seen from the second floor of the Green cars (information provided by Mitsuhiko). There were only three Green cars, of which only no. 7 was non-smoking. Four people in that car had a black briefcase with them._

_ A little bit of Conan-acting later (and a few bumps from the grumpier suspects), I found out that one man had nothing but boxer shorts in his briefcase. The kids and I were then thrown out of the car... right at your feet._

_ Never, in my wildest dreams, did I think I would ever be put in timeout like a naughty brat by my childhood friend. I can laugh about it now, even though at the time I was ready to tear my hair out._

_ With seven minutes left before the timer went off, I seriously considered telling you everything. After all, if you knew it was me, you would be able to tell the guards about the bomb in my place, they would search for it, and everyone would be saved. What use was keeping my secret to protect you if we were all going to die from an explosion anyway?_

* * *

><p>Ran swallowed hard, her throat dry. <em>Seven minutes?<em> And she remembered this, remembered telling Conan to stop running around and stay put in his seat. Had she really come this close to dooming them all?

She wondered what would have happened had Shinichi told her who he really was then. She liked to think that they would have searched for the Black Organization members together, and worked side-by-side to bring them down. She liked to think that Shinichi would have let her take part in the chase, would have let her help and support him.

Of course, she knew better now. These files were the proof : she was stuck reading them while Shinichi was off somewhere out there, risking his life.

Bitterly, she recalled 'Conan' addressing her in a firm, serious voice, calling her 'Ran' without any honorifics. She had scolded him for that.

* * *

><p><em> The words were almost out of my mouth when I figured out who the person with the bomb was.<em>

_ One of the suspects was a lady who had told me that she hadn't been to the dining car that day, and yet could tell me that Mount Fuji looked beautiful through the window, even though she was sitting on the wrong side of the train and wouldn't be able to see it from there. She could, however, have seen it from the window in the dining car, which meant that she had lied to me about not having been there._

_ What good reason would she have to lie about something like that to a child? It had to be to cover up the fact that she had dealt with the crooks in suits, which meant that she had the bomb._

_ It was then a matter of finding the woman (which was surprisingly easy after I had given you the slip again) in less than a minute, and preventing her from using her cell phone, which I figured out would have triggered a 10-second countdown on the bomb. Unfortunately, she had already dialed the number when I reached her and I had to kick the briefcase, bomb and all, out of the train with the help of my new shoes. It exploded in mid-air outside._

_ The train was stopped, the woman and the two guys in black arrested, and no one was hurt. The kids barged in and saved me when you tried to interrogate me about what I had been trying to tell you (after all, I had gotten as far as 'I'm not Edogawa Conan, I'm not even an elementary student') and somehow you let it slide. Happy end. Except we were late for the wedding. And I was so tense the whole time I'll probably wake up sore tomorrow._

_ This, however, leaves me no closer to finding the ones that did this to me. I'll have to keep looking._

_**The Bullet-Train Bombing : case closed.**_

* * *

><p>She exhaled slowly. A close call. A very close call. And surely only the first of many, considering the number of files in the cabinet upstairs, and what she could remember of 'Conan's' <em>adventures<em>, some of which she had taken part in.

Not to mention the most recent, the murder and bombing of the Twin Towers they had been involved in. 'And barely escaped alive,' she thought morbidly.

She felt somewhat glad that she hadn't been aware of it all, and selfish for being glad. And slightly guilty for getting in the way.

But no more, she resolved, reaching for the next file. Now that she knew, she would face everything head-on, close calls or no.

* * *

><p>Japanese words :<p>

Occhan : a familiar way of saying 'uncle'

Hakase : professor

* * *

><p>There you go my friends, thank you for your patience and for your kind reviews! Also, thank you to all those who have favorited or put this story on their alerts list. Even that helps, because it lets me know people like the story, though not everyone leaves reviews.<p>

As always, please let me know of any mistakes/incoherencies/things that bother you. I can only improve from knowing.


	7. Valentine's Day Murder Case

Summary : Ran, while writing about Conan in her diary, is seized by a melancholy feeling and decides to go to Shinichi's house to reminisce. While there, she discovers documents that contain some heart-stopping revelations… and insight into Shinichi's mind. Takes place after 5th movie, hypothesizing that Gin decided to investigate the survivors of the explosion from the bombs in the reception area. Events then precipitate and story diverges from canon.

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

Author's note : please remember that I am not exclusively describing the cases, but also embellishing and adding stuff from my imagination. For example, the part about Ran's mom saying 'When it comes to men, you never know what you really want until you have it' was entirely made up by me. I don't think Kisaki Eri ever said anything of the like in the series.

_Blabla_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

**Chapter 6**

Ran blanched as she saw the title on the first page : **The Valentine's Day Murder Case**. She was pretty certain she knew exactly which case that was. It was the first time someone had been murdered almost right in front of her. Even though the scene hadn't been particularly gruesome, the weapon of choice having been poison, she had been badly shaken up by it.

The victim had been Minagawa Katsuhiko-san, a medical student at Beika University. She and Sonoko had met him, as well as his friend and fellow student Wakamatsu Toshihide, at a coffee shop by coincidence. Sonoko had immediately set her sights on the handsome Minagawa-san and gladly accepted-for the both of them-Wakamatsu-san's invitation to a Valentine's Day party that would take place at his house.

Towards the end of the party, Minagawa-san had gotten up to smoke outside, and soon collapsed on the grass...

* * *

><p><em>I don't think I will ever forget this case. The events leading up to it deeply traumatized me.<em>

* * *

><p>Ran paused, went back and read the sentence again. 'Shinichi was <em>traumatized<em>? That deduction-obsessed freak was traumatized by a case? He usually takes it all in stride, no matter how horrifying... '

But wait. He was traumatized by _the events leading up to it_. Not the case itself.

Ran strained her memory, trying to recall what could possibly have marked the famous 'Modern Sherlock Holmes' so. After a minute of intense reflection, she sighed and gave up. Shinichi had probably written it all down anyway.

* * *

><p><em>I'm afraid I rather made a fool of myself, though I really couldn't help it at the time. And, well, I suppose it wasn't <em>all_ bad. The _denouement_ was... sweet. Corny, I know._

_**The Valentine's Day Murder Case**_

_ I think I can safely guess that you remember this one, but just in case, here's a quick refresher._

* * *

><p>Ran skipped over a few lines as it summarized what she already knew.<p>

* * *

><p><em>...Now here's the part you're not aware of : how I ended up at the crime scene... AKA the first embarrassing part.<em>

_ I now knew you were going to a Valentine's Day party, where girls are supposed to give chocolate to the guy they like, and where said guy is supposed to eat it straight away if the feelings are mutual._

_ And then I found you making chocolate in the kitchen. I attempted to ascertain the identity of the recipient by insinuating you were making it because 'Shinichi-niichan' might come back home._

_ Not very subtle of me, I know._

_ 'Shinichi? Oh right, I forgot about him.'_

_ That's what you answered me. What was I supposed to do? Just let you go to this party-with a guy who had a big enough crush on you for me, the Clueless One (as nicknamed by Sonoko), to notice-with chocolate signifying romantic feelings meant for an unknown person? I have great self-control, but I'm still a man. So when Wakamatsu came to pick you up in his car, I picked the lock on the trunk and stowed away._

* * *

><p>Her jaw dropped. Shinichi had been <em>jealous<em>! Not just a little, but enough to stow away on a car just to find out who she was planning on giving her chocolate to. She hadn't missed the lack of honorifics after Wakamatsu-san's name, something very uncharacteristic of Shinichi.

Her cheeks were burning, and she pressed her palms to them, glancing nervously about. Her heart was thumping hard, filling her chest with warmth.

Somehow, she felt more flattered by this petty display of jealousy than she thought she would have been by any of the eloquent, almost worship-like speeches she often heard in movies. And yet, she had always been moved by those scenes, thinking that _this _was how she would like Shinichi to tell her he loved her, even though there was no chance of it happening.

'I guess Okaa-san was right : when it comes to men, you never know what you really want until you have it.'

Feeling a lot better about reading about this case, she turned back to the file.

* * *

><p><em> I got out of the car alright when we stopped, but was then stranded in the garden for around half an hour before I sneezed from the cold and you noticed me.<em>

_ I have no idea what was happening before I came in, but everyone was almost done with the main course and Minagawa-san was drinking beer._

_ To make it short, the circumstances of all the people there were rather more complicated than it seemed at first._

_ Minagawa-san's mother and little brother were in fact his adopted family._

_ There was a love rectangle going on : gloomy Naomichi Masaki-san* had a crush on Tekiya Kaori-san, Minagawa-san's childhood friend who had a crush on _him_ ; Minagawa-san himself liked Watanabe Yoshimi-san because she looked like his biological mother._

_ Watanabe-san returned Minagawa-san's feelings, and that is what the murderer used to try and frame her for the crime._

_ ...I supposed I have to mention the traumatizing part I spoke of._

_ It was shortly after Minagawa-san had left the room, tipsy and seemingly in a bad mood (which he took out on Naomichi-san). He was closely followed by Tekiya-san and Sonoko, both of whom had a box of chocolate in hand. Yes, I did roll my eyes at Sonoko._

_ Wakamatsu asked you about your hobbies, and wouldn't believe that someone as 'delicate' as you would do something as 'savage' as karate. 'Drinking tea' and 'flower arranging' indeed! Plus, he was infringing on your personal space the whole time. So I decided to sit between he and you... just in case._

_ Now, I'm torn between feeling justified for doing so and regretting it bitterly. After all, if I hadn't moved, you would probably have laid him flat in half a second. But maybe he would have had time to get that kiss in beforehand._

* * *

><p>"Oh my God!" exclaimed Ran, clapping a hand over her mouth. She sat there for a minute, the scene flashing back in her mind, before promptly rolling off the couch laughing.<p>

Wakamatsu-san had tried to take her hand and, not noticing it was _Conan's_ hand he was holding, yanked him around and kissed him full on the mouth.

She was laughing so hard she was crying, 'Conan's' disgusted expression flashing in her mind periodically and sending her into further convulsions.

"Oh... o-oh, my... oh..." she could barely get out as she tried to compose herself. Wiping her face, her sides aching, she held up the sheaf of papers she had somehow managed to hold on to. An occasional giggle escaped her as her eyes skimmed the next few lines.

* * *

><p><em>...You have no idea how tempted I was to skip this part and just pretend it never happened. I had nightmares about it, you know.<em>

_ And I just know you're laughing at me. I saved your 'maiden lips' from being 'defiled' by some loudmouthed Neanderthal and this is the thanks I get?_

* * *

><p>A few more peals of helpless laughter rang out in the Kudo mansion.<p>

"I'm... I'm... sorry, Shinichi!" the girl got out before losing her composure again.

* * *

><p><em>ANYWAY. The fact that I was almost immediately thrown bodily across the room by said Neanderthal might sober you up a bit. I rolled a few times before hitting my head on the wall. Luckily, no concussion, though I sported a goose egg on my skull for a while. <em>

_ After that, I'm afraid I took your... defense... a bit more seriously, and forgot to use my Conan voice when I spoke to the baboo-I mean, Wakamatsu. I did remember to call you Ran-neechan though._

_ Say, what if, after all this is over, I've grown so used to calling you 'nee-chan that I keep doing it even as 'Shinichi'? That would be freaking weird._

_ I'll just speed through the rest of the case now. Naomichi-san attempted to murder Minagawa-san for hurting Tekiya-san (who he had a crush on, remember), but failed as he had put the poison on the cigarette filters and Minagawa-san removed those before smoking._

_ The true culprit was then Minagawa-san's adopted mother, who put the poison in the coffee and the antidote in the cake, thus everyone was poisoned and then cured except for the victim who disliked sweet things._

_ She then tried to frame Watanabe-san (the victim's love interest) by switching the chocolate she had given Minagawa-san with an identical, poisoned chocolate. The mother gave herself away by urging her son (Susumu) to eat cake despite his cavities, washing the coffee cups during the investigation, and letting Watanabe-san's chocolate melt through her kimono._

_ Sometime during all that, Occhan showed up and made accusations against the wrong people as usual, though gave me the opportunity to try out a neat little tranquilizer gun made in the shape of a watch that Agasa-Hakase had given me a couple of days before. It shoots little needles that dissolve right away once they hit someone's skin, and puts them right to sleep. This way, I won't have to keep giving your dad head trauma every time I want to solve a case._

* * *

><p>Ran growled, her fingers scrunching the paper a little. Alright, so her dad wasn't the best detective in the world, but Shinichi's attitude towards him was just a <em>little<em> too condescending. She couldn't help but hope her father got better in the future, or in later files, and solved a case by himself, so that she might make Shinichi eat his words.

Mouri Kogoro was a slob and a lazy drunk much of the time, but he had been a good officer, he was skilled in judo, he was a good shot with a pistol, and most of all he loved his wife and daughter more than anything. And Ran loved him for it.

* * *

><p><em>It was revealed that Minagawa-san's adoptive father had had trouble with his business, and thus his wife had tried to procure Minagawa-san's life insurance money in order to insure that her own son would grow up comfortably.<em>

_ Spoiled, more like, from what I've seen of the kid._

_ And so the case ended, and then came the part that made it all worth it._

_ We went to a nearby park to wind down a little and sat on a bench. Somehow, the gorill-Wakamatsu tracked us down and started shooting off his mouth again, taking the chocolate you had made without so much as a by-your-leave._

_ I was worried you would have to deal with a stalker, that is until you punched in the light pole next to us and yelled at him. I think I cracked a rib holding in my laughter as he crawled away crying in fear._

_ And then I found out the chocolate _was _in fact, meant for me, Shinichi, despite what you had said about forgetting about me. We shared it as the sun set. And at the risk of sounding corny (again), it was a moment I am sure I will treasure always, even though the significance of it was quite different for you._

_**The Valentine's Day Murder : case closed.**_

* * *

><p>Ran groaned as she let her head flop back against the couch. Why did he always have to do that? Every time she would feel angry at him, he would do or say something incredibly thoughtful or sweet and the anger would fade.<p>

She felt a bit sad about the last bit, though. How many times had they shared a moment like that and been on entirely different wavelengths during it? How often had Shinichi had to hold his feelings in as she looked at him and spoke to him ignorantly?

But she felt confident that that too, would change. After all, she felt closer to him already, thanks to these files. Despite the bad memories they might bring up, she felt thankful to have them. And...

'I wonder how much more blackmail material I can get from these?' she wondered evilly, squinting at the files. 'Kissed by an ogre of a guy... I'm pretty sure that was his first kiss, too.'

Her lips trembled dangerously and she snatched up the next file before she started laughing again.

* * *

><p>*They never mentioned the guy's first name in the anime. So I chose Masaki.<p>

Japanese words

Occhan : a familiar way of saying 'uncle'

Hakase : professor

French word (sort of)

Denouement : the ending

* * *

><p>There you go my friends, thank you for your patience and for your kind reviews! I got quite a few last time! Also, thank you to all those who have favorited or put this story on their alerts list. Even that helps, because it lets me know people like the story, though not everyone leaves reviews.<p>

As always, please let me know of any mistakes/incoherencies/things that bother you. I can only improve from knowing.


	8. Monthly Presents and Threat Case

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

**Author's note :**

**An anonymous reviewer asked if I was, by any chance, a Danny Phantom fan, because some phrases in the previous chapter were apparently used in the cartoon. I do actually like Danny Phantom, though not so much the actual cartoon as the plotline and potential for fanfiction-writing. I've seen some reaaally good stories in the DP fandom. However, I don't recall even thinking about Danny Phantom while writing the previous chapter. Would the reviewer who asked the question perhaps point out the phrases they were speaking of? I'm curious.**

**To Ghostreviewer13 : Thank you for your interest and kind words! I am sorry you had to wait so long for this chapter. I just wasn't inspired.**

**Another anonymous reviewer told me I should "definitely continue this fanfic" and that they loved "the way Shinichi tells the cases and puts his own feelings into the words." I thank you for the sentiment and taking the time to tell me what you liked.**

**I just noticed that in chapter 3 I wrote that Ran had brought back 3 folders from the attic, but I really meant to write 5, the fifth being "The Monthly Presents and Threat Case".**

_Blabla_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

_**Chapter dedicated to Horatio'H'Caine, who sent me numerous PMs offering help, encouragement and inquiring as to the progress of the chapter.**_

**Chapter 6**

Ran was only a few lines in "**The Monthly Presents and Threat Case**" file when she realized that she remembered it quite clearly also. It had been the first time that she had seriously suspected 'Conan' of, somehow, being Shinichi. And she had been right, even so early on! But somehow, Shinichi had managed to trick her into thinking she was silly for ever believing that a teenage boy could turn into a seven year-old child.

It had all begun when a man named Ogawa had knocked on her father's office door, then proceeded to drop an avalanche of small boxes containing various toys on top of Conan's-who had opened the door-head.

The man was a surgeon who had, two years before, unfortunately been unable to save one of his patients, a little boy called Ogino Tomoya. The child's father was understandably distraught and blamed Ogawa-sensei for the death of his son, even though there was no way the boy could have been saved, considering how bad his appendicitis had gotten by the time he was brought in for treatment.

Tomoya's father then sought to assuage his grief by seeking revenge on Ogawa-sensei. He started sending a monthly package of his son's old toys as well as money to the bewildered doctor. Also, once a year on his son's birthday-February the 19th-he sent a morning glory plant to the hospital where Ogawa-sensei worked. When the total amount of money reached 25 million yen, the amount that Tomoya's medical bill would have cost had he survived, a letter came with the last package of toys, saying "I have finished paying the 25 million yen. In exchange, I will come and get it." This made Ogawa-sensei uneasy enough that he made the trip to the Mouri Detective Agency.

Ran sighed. It was a sad story, and it could have ended in tragedy had Conan-Shinichi-not deduced the sender's identity and his ultimate goal in time.

She remembered the creeping feeling that 'Conan' was pulling the strings of their investigation, subtly guiding them all in the right direction. A chill had gone down her spine as she watched him make precise observations and deductions, his perceptiveness and logic just as flawless as Shinichi's would have been.

From the moment Ogawa-sensei had set foot in her father's office, the clues had kept piling up. The way he had known the doctor's occupation just from looking at his fingers; the way he had pointed out that the toys were used and old from the lack of barcodes on the boxes; how his comment about the possibility that the sender might be trying to buy something from the surgeon had led them to the hospital where he worked, the morning glory plant, the date of February 19th and the patients' records.

Her growing suspicions had pushed her to stand back and watch him, instead of trying to keep him from interfering with her father's work as she usually did. And the more she watched, the more other instances from previous cases came to mind, the more suspicious she grew.

In the present, she shook her head, a small smirk twisting her lips. In an attempt to trick Shinichi into giving himself away, she'd asked 'Conan' if he'd found any important information by looking through the patients' records while the adults were gone. He had gotten so involved in his explanations that he'd completely forgotten to act like a child. She'd have to tease him about that when next she could speak with him.

She flipped to the last pages. What she had never figured out was how exactly the knife had been knocked from Ogino-san's hand before he could stab little Ogawa Yuuta. Also, how was it that though she knew Conan and Shinichi were one and the same, she had gotten a phone call from 'Shinichi' while 'Conan' was right in front of her?

A few minutes later, she groaned. Of course. It was Agasa-hakase's handiwork : the electrical running shoes for kicking harder, and the voice-changing bowtie. No wonder 'Shinichi's' speech patterns suddenly seemed off!

She ground her teeth, frustrated at being fooled so completely despite all of the clues that pointed to her being right.

'Shinichi... don't think that you won't get a good kick in the butt for tricking me all this time, even though I understand why you did it!'

As if on cue, the phone rang.

Ran blinked at it dumbly. 'Could it be? So soon, even though he said he wouldn't call until it was safe, and that would probably be a while?'

She reached for the handset and looked at the screen, her heart pounding.

_Edogawa C._

'Yes!'

She thumbed the 'talk' button. "Moshi-moshi?"

_"Yo, Ran! I know I said I wouldn't call for a while, but we seem to have hit a dead-end over here. We're having to start over a good part of our investigation, so I have some free time. How are you?"_

She sighed a bit at hearing his voice again. She really had trouble holding on to her anger when she was just so relieved to know he was safe.

"I'm fine. I've read some more, but..."

_"That's good. Keep going. And no, I won't change my mind about letting you in on the action."_

She clenched her jaw. "I wasn't going to ask," she muttered petulantly.

It was a lie. He knew her too well. The skeptical silence at the other end of the line said as much.

Ran scowled. 'Fine, then,' she thought furiously. 'Time for a little petty revenge!'

"Oh Shinichi?" she said sweetly, "I wanted to ask you though, was Wakamatsu-san a good kisser?"

Cue choking sounds from Shinichi. She wanted to cackle maniacally.

_"Ran-you-I-that wasn't-"_ he spluttered.

The evil smile on her face grew.

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes later, she hung up with a satisfied sigh. Teasing Shinichi really did wonders for assuaging her frustration.<p>

She stretched and looked at her watch, blinking in surprise. It was three in the afternoon, and she hadn't had dinner yet. Her stomach gave a loud protest as if on cue, and she shook her head, rising to grab a bite to eat.

Once she was fed, she gathered the folders up, seeing as she had read them all, and headed for the attic again. It felt good to stretch her legs a bit, but she didn't dare go for a run or take time to practice katas, fearing that every minute spent on something other than reading could come back to haunt her later, when Shinichi needed her.

She hesitated before picking out ten more folders, figuring that if she couldn't finish them today, at least she wouldn't have to come back up to get more for a while.

With newfound concentration, she managed to read two more cases in short order, including "**The Art Gallery Owner Murder Case**", which was gruesome and sad but not otherwise memorable. The art gallery's director, who loved the paintings displayed "like his own children", had killed the callous gallery owner who wanted to close it and sold paintings behind his back. The case had been solved thanks to a few pointed observations from Conan, without need for Sleeping Kogoro.

"**The Tenkaichi Festival Murder Case**", where they had first met the imposing Yokomizo-keiji. This time Shinichi had put Kogoro to sleep in order to disprove the culprit's alibi and to give proof of his crime to the other detective. Again, as far as cases went, this one was nothing out of the ordinary.

Ran paused at that thought. 'I suppose that's what being friends with "the Modern Holmes" and being a detective's daughter does to you, thinking of a murder being "nothing out of the ordinary".'

She put the finished files off to the side and started on the next, quite determined to finish at least half of the folders she had brought down before she went to bed.

* * *

><p>Japanese words :<p>

-sensei : a suffix used after a person's name if they are teachers or otherwise knowledgeable people, like doctors, nurses, writers...

Hakase : professor

-keiji : 'detective'

moshi-moshi : Japanese way of answering the phone

* * *

><p>You guys have no idea how hard this was to finish. I lacked inspiration for months and when I pushed myself to write it was like chewing bricks : painful and pointless. So this is the result, and though I'm not particularly proud of it it didn't come out too badly I hope.<p>

Please review!

Edit : I keep having trouble with the "" in the phone conversations. Should be fixed now.


	9. Pro Soccer Player's Blackmailing Case

Disclaimer : I do not own Detective Conan or its characters.

**Author's note :**** I noticed that I wrote "chapter 6" instead of 7 in my previous update. Sorry about that.**

**To roxifoxi : what a coincidence! I have good timing sometimes, eh? ;) As I have said to some of my reviewers, if ever I feel like I can't continue the fic (which I don't see happening), I will say so. I won't leave everyone hanging, not knowing whether the fic will ever be updated again. If the wait is long, that's just the way I write. I spurts of inspiration with long blank stretches in between where writing progresses at a crawl. Thanks for reviewing :)**

_Blabla_ : writing

'Blabla' : thoughts

_**Chapter dedicated to Tobina, who found my story and proceeded to leave a review for each chapter instead of reviewing only the latest one.**_

**Chapter 8**

Ran stared at the file title. "**The Pro Soccer Player's Blackmailing Case**?" she said aloud, just to make sure she had read it correctly.

It didn't seem like one of Shinichi's typical cases. She remembered nothing involving a pro soccer player from the days around the date written in the header. Maybe she hadn't been there for this one? Still...

'Soccer, huh?' she mused, lids lowering halfway. Her lips thinned.

Perhaps Shinichi's obsession with soccer-second only to his obsession with deductive reasoning-had led him to accidentally stumble upon this one... just like a certain roller-coaster case's aftermath?

She huffed. 'He just won't learn!'

* * *

><p><em>My feelings about this case: utterly exhausting. <em>

_Not that it was that difficult to solve, it was actually relatively easy, and the culprit offered to turn himself in once we confronted him. If only every criminal would cooperate so nicely, my job-and I suppose, your dad's-would be much easier. And maybe a tad boring, too. I've found that a good chase really gets the blood going._

* * *

><p>'That boy,' Ran thought furiously, 'is crazy. I already knew that, but he's really completely bonkers. "A good chase", indeed!' Her eyes flicked back and forth over those lines.<p>

"'And I suppose, your dad's', couldn't resist making that dig, could you?" she muttered.

* * *

><p><em>No, what really took up most of my energy today was dodging you.<em>

* * *

><p>She stopped dead. "Dodging me?!" she exclaimed indignantly. "Took up most of his energy?! I'm not that bad!"<p>

She might have gotten in the way sometimes, she could admit that-begrudgingly-now that she had read about a few cases where she was involved, but there was no way that she was worse than the actual criminal!

* * *

><p><em>It started with a misunderstanding and just went downhill from there. Maybe I should have hung out a little longer with the kids before coming home, then I could have avoided the whole thing.<em>

_Nah, that would have been bad. Not only would an awesome soccer player have been humiliated, but you still would have found a way to make me suffer for all this._

* * *

><p>By now, Ran's mouth was opened in a wide 'O' shape with outrage. Her narrowed eyes were blazing as if she would set the document alight with the force of her stare.<p>

* * *

><p><em>You probably want to wring my neck right now, but I'll thank you to refrain from making any aggressive moves towards me, wherever I am, until you finish reading the file.<em>

_**The Pro Soccer Player's Blackmailing Case**_

_ I spoke of hanging out with the kids because that was what I was doing before coming home to find a girl hesitating in front of your dad's office door._

_ She was wearing a sailor-style school uniform, had shoulder-length brown hair, and she called herself Akagi Ryoko. Oh, and apparently she and I were dating-we had even kissed!-and all that without ever meeting, because I for sure had never seen her before._

* * *

><p>Realization dawned upon her. She remembered Ryoko-san, with the wide doe eyes and the cute ribbon in her hair and the way she wanted her dad to look for "Shinichi-san", because he had disappeared and she was sooooo worried!<p>

She remembered how angry she had been that Shinichi had been dating this demure-looking girl behind her back for long enough to get to first base. Then he'd actually called the office to say that he'd go to Ryoko-san's place shortly, and then called her at home while Ran was there, and...

But wait. Shinichi was Conan. Conan had been in the office when 'Shinichi's' call had come. Conan was the one who said that 'Shinichi' would go to Ryoko-san's place. Conan had come with them to the Akagi residence...

She slapped a hand over her face. 'Just how much of a fool did I make of myself?' she wondered resignedly.

* * *

><p><em> Right, so after Ryoko-san whipped out that picture of me saying that I was her missing boyfriend, and you sort of went into shock-I don't blame you for that, I was shocked as well-the office phone rang.<em>

_ Luckily, it was Agasa-hakase calling, and it was a bit rude but I pretended that the call was from 'Shinichi-nii-chan' saying that he'd go to the girl's home. I just wanted to know what her motives were, and she had a little air of desperation about her that piqued my interest._

_ When we got to the Akagi residence, I noticed the lock was all scratched up, usually a sign of forced entry. From there, the clues piled up: there were only men's and kid's shoes in the entryway; Ryoko-san wasn't familiar with the placement of the items in the cupboards when she tried to make tea; the room with the door marked "Mamoru" was a mess, seemingly ransacked._

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><p>Ran tried to tell herself that Shinichi had just been freakishly observant, as always, and that she just hadn't been rude enough to look into the bedrooms without permission. That was why she hadn't noticed any of these things. Only Shinichi-and maybe Hattori-kun-would have. Right.<p>

* * *

><p><em> I found a picture in that room, of a guy about my age and what had to be his little brother. When I joined you in the dining room, the Sunday Cup was on TV, and almost on cue, the player Akagi Hideo-nicknamed "Hide"-was shown, and I recognized him as the guy in the picture.<em>

_ So that was Akagi Hideo's residence, where he lived with his younger brother Akagi Mamoru, and Akagi Ryoko was probably not "Akagi" at all but a friend who wanted Kudo Shinichi to come to that house._

_ I put the pieces together: judging from Hide's atrocious play on TV, he was being pressured into throwing the match, via his kidnapped brother, and Ryoko-san wanted me to find the kidnapper._

_ I went to the bathroom and called the Akagi home phone using hakase's new invention-a portable fax machine in the shape of a bento, of all things-and Ryoko-san confirmed my deduction._

* * *

><p>Ran buried her flaming face in her hands. At the time, she had been too relieved to hear that Ryoko-san had never even met Shinichi, much less gone out with him, to be embarrassed by the fact that a whole kidnappingblackmail case had been solved right under her nose without her knowing about it-and not for lack of clues. Now, the facts were laid out before her in black and white, and she felt sort of... stupid.

Forget noticing the out-of-place stuff at the Akagi residence, _Shinichi_ wasn't the sort of guy who would hide the fact that he was in a relationship from everyone. Though he wasn't overtly emotional or even very demonstrative, he was usually true to his feelings and principles.

He _could_ be a jerk sometimes, like when she'd cornered him in the bathroom and he'd pretended he had something important to say to her-and only her-through the phone, only to hang up and run away when she turned her back to take the handset from Ryoko-san. She understood that he had probably been desperate to protect his secret, but that was really insensitive of him.

Ran sighed, picking up the sheaf of papers again, her eyes roving distractedly over the page and her mind only taking in a few lines here and there.

* * *

><p><em>...faxed over the letters from the kidnapper and the victim, which was very strange : "Nii-chan, resurrect me"...<em>

_...Onimaru game in Mamoru-kun's room and remembered what Genta and Mitsuhiko had said about resurrecting the main character..._

_...the character "ki" from "Naoki", who was in fact the culprit, only he had never intended to harm Mamoru-kun..._

_...sorry about hanging up on you after saying that, but you had gone past "scary" at that point and gone into "terrifying". The way you kicked in Naoki-san's door..._

* * *

><p>Ran was slightly mollified. 'Scared him, did I?' she thought smugly. After all, Shinichi was afraid of very little. The apology helped, too.<p>

She was a bit ashamed of her behavior at Uemura Naoki's place, however. At the time, she had no idea that he was actually blackmailing someone by holding their younger brother "hostage". For all she knew, he'd been an innocent bystander, and she had kicked in the door right on top of it, when he was already injured.

Only Shinichi could exasperate her to the point of blanking out everything else. Her jealousy had grown into a rage that surprised even herself. It was lucky that she had ended up inadvertently helping with the case and no real harm had been done.

* * *

><p><em>...turned out Naoki thought that Hide had injured his leg on purpose, to remain Tokyo Spirits' best player, and wanted to humiliate him in return...<em>

_...we didn't involve the police, as you recall, because to Hide, Naoki was a good friend and rival, though Naoki seemed to have forgotten that in his bitterness..._

_...all's well that ends well, except that it took you three whole days and lots of explanations from Ryoko-san before you would believe that I had never gone out with the poor girl._

* * *

><p>Ran rolled her eyes. Alright, so she had wanted to be sure, so sue her. From her angle (a rather obtuse one, but still), Shinichi's behavior had been suspicious as heck, calling Ryoko-san from inside the same house, running away...<p>

She'd finally caught up to him, though, in an alley somewhere. Well, she'd heard his voice, and seen his silhouette projected across a wall, but she hadn't actually seen him.

'Light from Agasa-hakase's car coming from behind him... made him seem taller than he was. And he probably hid in there after talking, while I ran around looking for him like an idiot,' she thought sullenly.

She paused. He'd said something sweet at the end, hadn't he? Because she hadn't been angry at him anymore, she just wanted to see him. Had he written about that? Feeling shyly hopeful, she dropped her eyes to the last few lines.

* * *

><p><em> Forgetting to turn off the portable fax machine slash bento was one of those stupid oversights I have sometimes. I'd just given the phone number to Ryoko-san, and I knew you still thought I had been dating her behind your back, and yet I never thought about the risk that either of you would try calling again once the case was over.<em>

_ So I was forced to run away again when the thing went off in my backpack, and, well, you know what happened after. It's a little embarrassing, so I won't go over the whole thing again._

_ All I can say is that Agasa-hakase has awesome timing sometimes. And that I meant what I said: I'll worry if you cry. So, try not to give me early gray hairs, okay?_

_**The Pro Soccer Player's Blackmailing : case closed.**_

* * *

><p>She rolled her eyes even as an amused little smile tugged at her lips. He hadn't been able to bring himself to just say "don't cry". Even though he'd used words like "a moment I will treasure always" and had already admitted that he could get jealous of guys who got close to her, he still couldn't ask her directly not to cry. Well, he had always been weird that way. Extremely blunt at times, and roundabout at others.<p>

Some people would have been bothered by that, she mused as she put the folder down neatly on the "finished" pile. But not her, she thought, picking up the next file. Her smile softened, becoming more tender.

'Shinichi is Shinichi. That's just the way he is.'

* * *

><p>Japanese words :<p>

-hakase: professor

nii-chan: familiar way to address an 'older brother'

bento: Japanese lunch box

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><p>Well. That sure came out easier than the last one, and a heck of a lot quicker, too. Constructive criticism and positive comments welcome as usual. Many thanks to all the people who favorited the story and myself as an author!<p> 


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